Be Mine
by Funkylocomotive
Summary: It’s a Rabby. Basically like all the others. It’s about how Ray and Abby get together. This is my second story, I’m still getting used to writing. Please be kind. Anonymous reviews accepted.
1. Mistletoe

Abby stands on the front porch, watching the snow come down in heavy flakes. Inside the house, music is playing, food is being served, and people are having fun. _I should be in there, _she thinks.

"But no Abby, you're out here isolating yourself from everyone else. You do this at every party," she says out loud.

The screen door squeaks as it's pushed open and footsteps cross the porch and stop when they meet Abby.

"Talking to yourself Lockhart?" a voice asks.

Abby turns to see Ray standing behind her. She rolls her eyes and turns back to watch the snow.

"Come on Abby, lighten up, it's Christmas Eve," Ray says, "Why aren't you in having fun with all of us?"

"That's a good question Ray," Abby says, "I-I just don't know."

"Well come on," Ray says as he takes her by the hand, "You are coming in with me, and we are going to have a great time together." He gives her what looks like a genuine smile, and she smiles back. They walk into the house together.

"How did you get her to come in here?" Susan asks as she and Ray watch Abby dance with Carter.

"Oh, well I just put on a little bit of the old Ray charm and well let's just say she got a little bit weak in the knees and gave in… just like all the women do," Ray answers.

Susan shoots him a looks and Ray gives her a cheeky grin.

"What can I say?" Ray asks, "I'm just so irresistible."

Susan throws her hands up and says, "I have heard enough of this!"

Ray laughs at her and stands up.

"Well if you'll excuse me," he says, "I've got some mingling to do." He walks away leaving Susan to shake her head and mutter random phrases about how they let just about anyone become a doctor nowadays.

"Hey what's up Sam? Luka, how's it going? Weaver-,"

"Don't start with me Barnett," Kerry says, "I see and hear enough of you at work. Just let me have a break for one night."

"Just can't handle my manly charm," Ray mumbles as he walks away, "Hey Carter, I see you're having fun. How about you Lockhart? Are you enjoying yourself?"

Abby nods and smiles, "Yes, I'm having a great time. Thanks Ray."

"Well how about paying me back by dancing with me for awhile?" Ray asks shooting her an innocent look.

Abby looks to Carter with a disgusted face, praying that he won't give her up.

"You know," Carter says, "Go ahead. I wanted to talk to Susan anyway." Abby's eyes grow wide and Carter chuckles as he walks away. Abby feels a hand slide around her hip.

_Fine. _She thinks. _Just one song._

She takes Ray's hand and they begin to dance.

"You know, I'm really not as bad as you make me out to be," Ray says, "I'm actually a pretty nice guy."

Abby rolls her eyes and asks, "Is this when I'm not around?"

Ray fakes a hurt expression and says, "Was I being an ass when I talked you into coming out of the cold and joining the party?"

Abby looks down. "I'm sorry Barnett," she whispers

"Don't worry Lockhart," Ray says, "I'll get my revenge when you least expect it."

The pair continues to dance and Abby actually starts to enjoy Rays company. She laughs at his jokes and can't help but make fun of him when she knows that he's exaggerating his stories. _His jokes aren't that bad._ She thinks_. Maybe Ray isn't really as bad as I thought._

"Lockhart, hey anyone home?" Abby is shaken from her thoughts by Ray's voice. He gives her a cheesy grin and points to the ceiling.

"Say 'hello' to the revenge," he says. Abby looks up to find mistletoe. She immediately frowns.

"Come on Abby," Ray says.

"I am not kissing you Ray!" Abby hisses back.

"Abby, it's Christmas Eve! You have to do it!" Carter shouts.

"Yeah it's tradition," Sam adds.

Abby rolls her eyes and gives Ray a peck on the cheek.

"What was that?" Carter asks, "It was pathetic."

Abby grumbles as she takes Ray's face in her hands and gives him a passionate kiss on the mouth. When it's over Ray and Abby stare at each other for a moment. Then Abby turns to the party.

"Okay? Has everyone gotten their jollies for the evening?"

Later That Evening

Abby and Susan are in the kitchen washing and drying the dishes.

"What I don't understand is why _we're_ washing the dishes," Susan says, "I mean this isn't even our house. It wasn't our idea to have this party."

"Come on Susan it's just a nice thing to do," Abby answers.

"Well that's the last one," Susan says handing a glass to Abby.

"Good I have to get home, I need to sleep," Abby says.

Abby and Susan emerge from the kitchen into the living room. They retrieve their coats and get ready to leave. Most of the party guests have left, but a few still linger. Susan joins the small group of friends in the center of the living room.

"I'll see you later Susan," Abby says, "Thanks for the dance Carter."

"See you tomorrow," Susan yells.

"Bye Abby," Carter calls.

Abby steps out into the cold Chicago winter and pulls her jacket tighter around herself. A hand grabs her arm and she screams immediately.

"Hey, hey, it's just me," Ray says with a smile.

"Holy shit Ray!" Abby says sounding pissed, "Do you want to give me a heart attack?"

"Actually I wanted to walk you home. But if you did have a heart attack, I would know what to do." He smirks.

"Whatever Ray," Abby says.

"It's a pretty cold night," Ray says as they walk.

"Well it is winter," Abby comments.

"I wasn't aware of that," Ray jokes.

They walk in silence for the rest of way.

"Well, this is me," Abby says, "Thanks for walking me home. I'll see you at work tomorrow?"

"You bet," Ray answers.

"Okay then… goodnight," Abby says as she walks into the building and lets the door close behind her.

"Goodnight Abby," Ray whispers as he lingers outside the door for a few more moments.


	2. Lies

Thank you to everyone who reviewed my story. Your words mean so much to me. Here's chapter two, I hope you all enjoy reading it.  
Disclaimer: I own nothing at all. I wouldn't mind owning Ray, although I don't think my husband would be very happy about that.

Abby walks into the ER the next morning at 9:15.

"Abby you're late!" Susan yells.

"I know!" Abby yells back.

She's putting her jacket and hat into her locker when Susan walks in. Susan watches Abby put on her lab coat and stethoscope.

"So?" she asks.

"So what?" Abby asks.

"Come on Abby, is there anything you'd like to tell me?"

Abby stares at her blankly.

"You know," Susan says, "You and Ray…"

Abby bursts out laughing. "You think Ray and I… Oh Susan come on, are he and I even remotely similar? Do you see anything going on between us?"

"Well I did see that second kiss last night," Susan replies, "And I believe that was Ray that I saw walking you home."

"Susan are you nuts? I kissed him because we were under the mistletoe and everyone was pestering me to kiss him. And yes Ray did walk me home last night, but Susan it was nothing really. Go ask him yourself."

"I intend to," Susan says with a smile as she leaves the lounge.

Susan walks up next to Ray and begins to fill out some paperwork.

"So," she says, "You and Lockhart, huh?"

Ray looks up at her with his usual smirk, but continues his paperwork.

"How was that kiss?" she asks.

"I don't think you could even call that a kiss," Ray answers.

"Well that second one looked like a kiss to me," Susan says. Ray smiles as he thinks about the kiss and Susan knows that she's got him. "I saw you walking her home," Susan adds. Ray blushes and looks away. "Oh something did happen, I knew it! Tell me!" she exclaims.

"I really shouldn't," Ray says, "It was a personal moment between Abby and me."

"Come on Ray, I'm Abby's best friend. You can trust me not to blab." Ray ponders this for a moment.

"Well maybe, on one condition. I need the Friday after New Years off."

"Deal," Susan says.

Ray looks around to make sure no one else is listening in on their conversation and then says, "Well we walked up to the front door and we stood there for awhile talking about nothing in particular when all of a sudden we kissed. One thing led to another and we ended up in her bed together and let me tell you something, for being fairly small she can really-,"

"You know Ray," Susan interrupts, "I think I've heard enough for now. You can tell me the rest later." She gets up and walks to the lounge. When she is finally gone, Ray cracks up.

"He told you what?!" Abby exclaims, "That little creep!"

"So I'm guessing that you didn't sleep with him then?" Susan asks.

"What do you think Susan?" Abby asks storming out of the lounge.

"I think I just gave the little liar a day off," Susan says to herself, chasing after Abby.

Abby finally reaches her victim and slaps his arm. "Why are you going around saying that you and I slept together?" she asks.

"Whoa chill out Lockhart," Ray says, "It was only a joke; I thought it was funny."

"Well it's always funny until someone gets hurt, right?" Abby asks, "And I'll make sure that you're the one who's getting hurt. In fact I'll make sure that you'll never be able to sleep with anyone ever again so then you-,"

Susan grabs Abby's and drags her back to the lounge. Abby screams at Ray the entire way there.

"Abby, you need to chill out," Susan says, "I can't afford to lose an intern right now, no matter how annoying he is."

"Fine," Abby says, "I'll wait until you find a replacement and then I'll kill him." She smiles sweetly.

"Very funny," Susan says.


	3. Johnny Depp

Here's chapter three. Read and enjoy. Oh, and don't forget to review.

"What a day!" Abby says as she digs her coat out of her locker, "I didn't think my shift would ever end."

"I know," says Neela, "I swear I saw the clock move backwards a couple times today."

Abby laughs. Ray walks into the lounge and Abby immediately shuts her locker.

"Well Neela I'm off, have a nice time with your folks. I'll see you on Sunday." She bolts for the door.

"Abby wait," Ray says grabbing her arm.

"What do you want Barnett?" she asks sounding annoyed.

"I want to apologize for yesterday," he says, "It was a really dumb thing to do. And I was wondering if you'd like to go out for dinner tonight?"

Abby looks at him for awhile. _I am hungry._ She thinks. _But seriously, this is Ray and-_

"You look hungry Abby," he says, "Come on, it'll be fun."

"Maybe some other time," Abby answers, "I wouldn't be able to stay awake."

"Okay, I'll see you later then," Ray says.

"Sure," Abby says as she walks out of the lounge.

Ray stands there looking upset.

"Hmm maybe that'll teach you not to spread rumors," Neela says as she walks past him.

Abby walks through the apartment door and immediately drops her purse and coat.

"I need a bath," she says, "A nice, hot bath."

As Abby lowers her aching body into the steaming water, the day's events play over in her mind. She thinks about Ray, his offer for dinner. Her mind wanders to the Christmas party, the kiss… She suddenly sits up quickly.

"Why the hell am I thinking about Ray right now?"

She emerges from the tub awhile later feeling pure and refreshed. As she's wrapping herself in a towel, there's a knock at the door.

"Maybe Neela forgot something," she says as she crosses the living room and opens the door. "Ray!" she exclaims jumping back and almost dropping her towel. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I got us a pizza and some movies. I figured we could hand out since you were too tired to go out to eat," he answers, "But I see you've got something else in mind."

"Shut up," Abby says. Ray steps in with a big smirk on his face. Abby slams the door and looks at him. "What?"

"You know, the towel is a good look for you," Ray says, "It really hugs those curves." Abby rolls her eyes and then storms into her bedroom.

"Ray, how did you figure out where I live? You're not stalking me are you?"

"I walked you home after the Christmas party remember?" Ray says.

"Oh yeah," she says walking out of the bedroom drying her hair with the towel, "Don't you have anything better to do tonight?" When Ray doesn't answer, Abby glances over at him to see that he's staring at her with a cute little smile. "Ray," she says, "Snap out of it."

"Sorry," he says, " But you know I think the outfit you've got on right now beats the towel. Why don't you dress like this more often?"

"Ray, these are my pajamas," Abby says, "And believe me when I say that I will never wear them to work."

Ray laughs. "Would you like some pizza?" Abby eyes him suspiciously.

"Sure," she says.

"Oh and I brought _Pirates of the Caribbean, Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow, _and _The Secret Window_," Ray says.

"Hmm, I think someone has a little obsession with Johnny Depp," Abby says as she looks at the pizza.

"What can I say?" asks Ray, "He's a good looking man, no match for yours truly mind you, but a good looking man nonetheless." He gives Abby one of his trademark smirks that causes her to burst out laughing.

"Very funny Ray… Now, about that pizza"

"Okay, we've watched _Edward Scissorhands _and _Pirates of the Caribbean_, what's next?" Ray asks.

Abby shrugs, "I pick the first two, it's your turn now." She gets up and goes into the kitchen. "Do you want any ice cream?"

"Lockhart, you really know how to make a man happy," Ray shouts, "What kind do you have?"

"Um… mint chocolate chip, strawberry, and peanut butter cup," she says.

"Bring it all," Ray says. Abby walks in carry the tubs of ice cream and spoons. Ray smiles at her as they settle down on the couch together. "Well we're watching _Sleepy_ _Hollow_." They each take a tub of ice cream and watch the movie.

"Want some strawberry," Ray asks. Abby nods, her eyes still glued to the TV. "Open up," Ray says. Abby looks at him but accepts the spoonful.

"So what are you doing for New Years Eve?" he asks feeding her another spoonful.

"I have to work until eleven that night," Abby answers, "I really don't mind though, I wouldn't be doing anything anyway."

"Well I'm off at ten," Ray says, "We should celebrate together."

Abby laughs, "Why, haven't you got anything better to do?" Ray looks hurt.

"Can't a guy want to hang out with you without getting the third degree?" he asks. Abby shrugs. "So what do you say?"

Abby thinks about it for a moment. "Sure why not?"

Ray smiles at her and says, "Great! I'll bring some more Johnny Depp movies." Abby smiles at him.

"Sometimes I just don't know about you Barnett."

Within a half an hour, Abby is sleeping against Ray's arm. Ray glances over at her.

"Well I guess not everyone appreciates Johnny Depp's acting abilities." He props Abby up against the side of the couch and proceeds to clean up the room. He puts the ice cream in the freezer and then returns to the living room to find Abby sprawled out on the couch.

"Obviously, someone has never heard of sharing." He pushes Abby to a sitting position, lays on the couch next to her, and gently lays her body on top of his. "Now, isn't this nice?" he asks.

Abby wakes up several hours later to find herself wrapped in Ray's arms.

"Ray," she whispers poking his side, "Ray wake up!" Ray doesn't wake up, but simply mumbles a few syllables. "

"Fine Ray," Abby says, "You win." She gets up and covers Ray with a blanket.

"Goodnight Sleeping Beauty," she says as she walks to her bedroom.


	4. Stop, it's shower time

It was the day of her wedding. She heard the bells ringing, and the music played softly as Carter walked her down the aisle. Her future husband stood waiting for her. If only she could see his face. She turned to look at her guests.

"Abby, Abby… Abby!"

Abby falls violently back to earth and opens her eyes to find Neela shaking her.

"What do you want Neela? What time is it?"

"It's 6:30am. Abby, why is Ray sleeping on our couch?" Neela asks.

"Oh that," Abby says, "We watched some movies last night. He fell asleep and wouldn't wake up, so I just left him there. Why are you home already?"

"My parents sent me here to get my green dress. Apparently the red one makes me look like a whore. I'm not allowed to go to the party with them unless I have the dress. Frankly, I'd rather sit here and have you tell me about your night alone with Ray."

Abby laughs. "Don't worry Neela, you didn't miss anything. In fact, I'm pretty sure that Ray is more attracted to Johnny Depp right now than he will ever be to me." Neela gives Abby a look that is somewhere between fear and confusion. Abby laughs again and says, "I'll tell you later, you don't want to be late for that party do you?"

"You're right," Neela replies, "But when I get home tomorrow, you had better tell me everything. I want to know." Abby nods and Neela leaves the room.

"Have fun Neela," Abby shouts. The front door shuts and Abby falls back in bed. Minutes later, Ray strolls into the bedroom.

"Good morning Abby," he says smiling.

Abby sighs, "Good morning Ray." Ray sits on the edge of her bed. "Don't you have anything to do today?" Abby asks.

"Well," Ray says, "I happen to know that you and I both start work in two hours."

"What checking my schedule now so you can stalk me?" Abby asks as she sits up.

"You know what Lockhart, you are a very paranoid woman. First I show up here with a pizza and you think I'm stalking you and now I tell you that you and I work together today and you think I'm after you. Lady you have some issues."

"Sure Ray," Abby says, "I need a shower to wake me up."

"So do I," Ray says, "You know if we take one together, it'll go twice as fast."

"Nice try Ray. Let's just say that I've already tried that and rather than cutting the time in half, it usually doubles it," Abby says.

"Ooh Lockhart, who have you shared a shower with? Wait no, let me guess. Hmm… Susan? Sam? Weaver? Or how about Neela… Actually it would be even better if it was all of them with you and-,"

"Very funny Ray," Abby says, "You can take a shower after I'm done."

Ten minutes later, Abby enters the bedroom wrapped in a towel.

"Well Lockhart, I see we're making the towel outfit a regular thing," Ray says with a whistle.

"Shut up Ray," Abby says rolling her eyes, "You can take a shower now if you'd like." She starts to remove the towel but then realizes that Ray is still standing there watching her. "Will you go take a shower already?" Ray grins at her and scampers out of the room.

Abby is fully dress and pacing back and forth outside the bathroom.

"He has been in the shower for thirty minutes now!" she exclaims, "Fine, you know what Ray? Two can play this game." She marches into the bathroom and begins to brush her hair.

"Abby I knew you'd finally cave in," Ray say, " Shall I make room for you in here?" Abby reaches over and flushes the toilet. "Ah hot!" Ray shrieks as he jumps around in the shower. He pops his head out from behind the curtain. "That was really low."

"I know," Abby replies pulling her hair back to braid it. Ray turns the water off.

"Could you please pass the towel to me?" he asks. Abby picks up the towel and hands it to Ray who rips open the shower curtain and stands in front of her in all his naked glory. "Thanks," he says taking the towel. Abby, who has turned away to avoid looking at anything, simply nods. "You know Abby, I feel so comfortable around you, I mean look I can get naked right in front of you."

"That's okay Ray I don't want to look, I prefer to leave it up to my imagination," Abby says.

"So what you're saying is that you imagine what I look like when I'm naked," Ray says.

"No!" Abby says, "That's not what I meant Ray!"

Ray and Abby manage to find two seats on the El and sit in silence for most of the ride. Finally, Ray leans close to Abby, almost resting on her shoulder. "Admit it," he whispers into her ear, "You liked it." Abby looks him in the eye and raises an eyebrow. Ray smirks at her.

"You are just too cocky Barnett," she says.

As Ray and Abby enter the ER, they are greeted by a full waiting room.

"Hey guys," Susan says as she walks past, "Could you both hurry up, please? We have the full waiting room and two traumas, ETAs 4 minutes and 5 minutes."

Ray and Abby rush to the lounge and emerge minutes later.


	5. Playing games

"I'm taking my break Susan!" Abby yells as she walks into of the lounge.

"I'm going with you," Susan calls back, "Frank, I'm going on break, I'll be back in fifteen." Susan joins Abby in the lounge. "So," she says pouring two cups of coffee, "Seeing as you won't be in the ER on New Years Eve, what do you have planned?"

"Susan, I work until eleven on New Years," Abby says, "And Ray and I are going to hang out and watch some movies."

"I knew it!" Susan exclaims, handing the cup of coffee to Abby, "There is something going on between the two of you."

"Susan you have gone mad," Abby says taking a sip of her coffee, "Ray has a girlfriend."

Susan shakes her head. "Rumor has it they broke up. You know, can't handle the whole long distance thing."

"I thought you didn't listen to all the rumors that circulate, Susan."

"Oh I listen to them, I just choose not to believe the majority of them." Susan replies.

"Well don't tell me that you believe the one about Ray," Abby says.

"Sorry to disappoint you Abby, it's kind of hard not to believe it when Ray was the one who told me about it." There's a bit of silence between the two. "I did hear something else this morning that I really don't know if I should believe or not."

"What?" Abby asks.

"Well someone told me that she saw you and Ray leave your apartment together this morning."

"Susan!" Abby exclaims, "All we did was watch movies and then he slept on my couch. It was a completely innocent evening." She sighs loudly and puts her head in her hands.

"Abby, he's cute, and young, and-,"

"And I'm old!" Abby interjects.

"You are not," Susan says, "Come on Abby, he obviously wants you. I think this is something you should pursue."

"Susan, the man is obsessed with Johnny Depp! I don't want to interfere with that."

"Abby, tell me something," Susan says, "How do you feel when Ray is around you?"

"Well I feel happy," Abby smiles, "Like at the Christmas party, I had a lot of fun because of him. He knows how to cheer me up."

Susan smiles at her. "I think you want him," she says, " Maybe you just don't realize it yet." Abby shrugs at Susan's comment. "Well maybe you'll figure it out on New Years Eve," Susan offers. She looks at her watch. "Are you ready to go back?"

"Susan, am I ever ready to go back?" Abby asks. They laugh as they leave the lounge.

By the end of her shift, Abby is completely worn out and has practically passed out on the couch next to Susan.

" What time are you on 'til?" Abby asks.

"Two," Susan answers rubbing her eyes.

"I'm glad I'm not you, a fourteen hour shift is good enough for me," Abby says.

"Well I do get to have a few days off for working all of these odd hours," Susan says, "Lucky me." They laugh together.

"I just want to go home, take a shower and crawl into my nice warm bed," Abby says stretching her arms over her head.

"You know Abby, you really need to start dating again. You have no life right now. Who was the last guy you were with?" Abby just looks at Susan. "Oh, that's right," Susan says. There's a long, uncomfortable silence between them. "You know it really wouldn't hurt to give Ray a try."

"Susan, I've heard enough of this. I really just need to go home right now and relax," Abby says as she stands up and goes to her locker. Ray enters the lounge.

"Hello ladies," he says.

"Hi Ray," they both reply.

Ray takes Abby's coat from her and helps her put it on. "Thanks Ray," she says. Ray gives her a sweet smile.

"So, are you up to hanging out again tonight?" he asks. Abby thinks for a moment and then nods. "Well then, shall we go?" Abby nods again and looks over at Susan who has a huge grin on her face.

"Have fun you two," she says as they walk out the door.

"So do you want to go to your place or mine?" Ray asks as they leave the ER.

"It doesn't matter to me," Abby smiles.

"Well then, I'll take you to my place," Ray says, "All of my movies are there anyway." Abby laughs.

"Well here we are," Ray says when they finally reach the apartment building. They walk to his apartment and go inside. Abby looks around as she steps in.

"Wow, this is a lot nicer than I expected."

"What did you expect? Pizza boxes piled to the ceiling and dirty laundry everywhere?"

"Well, yeah basically," Abby answers taking her coat off. Ray laughs.

"So what do you want to?" Ray asks. Abby shrugs and collapses on the couch.

"I don't know, do you have anything in mind?" she glances over at Ray. He smirks at her and raises his eyebrows. "Not that Ray!" Abby laughs.

"Well, I have board games," Ray says.

Four hours, five games of Trouble, five rounds of Chutes and Ladder, and three games of Candyland later, Ray and Abby are sitting around the Life game board.

"Holy crap Ray," Abby says, "You're going to need a second car for all those kids."

"How is it that I have managed to land on every baby space on this board so far?" Ray asks. Abby shrugs and laughs. "This game is rigged."

Abby stretches her arms over her head and lies down on the floor.

"Getting tired?" Ray asks. Abby nods. "Well I can wake you up." He crawls over next to her and starts tickling her sides.

"Ray stop it!" Abby screams as she squirms, "I mean it. If you don't stop I'll-,"

Ray rolls over and pulls Abby on top of him; their faces are inches away.

"Umm Ray, I think I'm going to get going; it's getting late." Abby stands up and straightens her shirt. She quickly walks to the door and steps outside.

"Abby wait," Ray says, "I'm not sorry for what happened in there."

"Me either," Abby says with a smile as she turns and walks away. Ray stares as her figure grows smaller and smaller. A smile creeps on his face.


	6. Happy New Year

Hey everyone! Thank you all for reviewing my story; it's very encouraging. Here's chapter six. Enjoy!

The ER is extremely quiet; the waiting room is empty and there has only been one trauma the whole day. _Just wait until all the drunks decide to start celebrating._ Abby thinks to herself while standing at the admit desk reading a chart. Basically trying to look busy. She suddenly feels a hand run down her back.

"Good morning Lockhart," Ray whispers into her ear, "My what a wonderful day it is!" Abby turns to him and smiles.

"Hi Ray."

"You're looking quite radiant today," he says. He leans over and nuzzles his nose into her neck, causing her to giggle. "And you smell great too." Abby playfully punches him.

"So are you ready for tonight?" He asks, "We are going to have the greatest New Years party ever. I have my Johnny Depp movies already lined up, I bought some kids' wine, how does Chinese sound?" Abby is about to speak when Susan walks up.

"You two are making me sick, quit all this flirting nonsense and just get it over with. What is this high school?"

"Well would you look at that," Ray says, "I've got a patient in exam 3." He smirks and walks away. Abby stands up to try and escape Susan but doesn't make it far.

"Abby has anything happened between you guys yet?" Susan asks. Abby shakes her head. "Well what did you two do the other night when you got together?"

"We played games," Abby answers. Susan gives her a look. "We really did! We played Trouble, and Chutes and Ladders, and checkers, and Candy land."

"Abby how do you expect to get a relationship out of this when you two can't even get past childhood?"

"Susan you're overreacting. Ray and I are just friends," Abby says.

"You're scared aren't you?" Susan asks. Abby shakes her head. "Abby just admit it. You're scared of getting into a relationship with Ray because it might end. Well Earth to Abby, relationships start and end; it's a fact of life. You can't spend your whole life fearing what might happen, okay? Aren't you dying to know if it would work out with Ray?" Abby nods, biting her bottom lip. "Abby you have to take chances. It's what makes life worthwhile. Wouldn't you rather find out what would happen rather than wondering about it forever?" Abby nods and sighs.

"You know what Susan you're right. I'm scared okay. Not once in my life has a relationships worked out. I had a failed marriage; there was Luka and Carter… Relationships just don't work for me. I just figure that I shouldn't get my hopes up because nothing ends well for me." Susan puts her arm around Abby.

"I think you should give Ray a try," she whispers, "You guys are really close already." Abby nods.

"You know, you're right. I love it when Ray's around; we have so much fun together. Maybe something will happen tonight."

"And if it does, you have to promise me two things," Susan says.

"What's that?" Abby asks.

"Promise me that you'll let me in on all the details, and you'll use protection if necessary."

"Susan you are awful," Abby laughs, "What do you think I am, a whore?"

"No, just a woman who hasn't… you know, in awhile."

"Shut up!" Abby laughs.

Abby is at her locker slowly putting on her jacket and hat. Twenty-hour shifts aren't exactly her favorite. Ray walks into the lounge. "You ready to go?" he asks.

"Yes, please get me out of here!" Abby says. She and Ray walk out of the lounge and past the admit desk saying goodnight and happy New Year to everyone

"I brought my car so we can get back to your place faster," Ray says.

"Great," Abby smiles. They get in the car and drive home. The ride is uneventful, with nothing more than small talk.

"You look really tired," Ray says, " Are you going to make it through this last hour?" Abby nods and smiles. A few minutes later, they pull up by the apartment building and go up to the apartment.

"Oh home at last!" Abby exclaims taking off her coat. "I'll be right back Ray." Ray makes himself at home and sits on the couch. Abby walks out of her bedroom a few minutes later wearing a tank top and pajama pants. "That's better," she says smiling as she sits down next to Ray.

"You bet it is," Ray says. Abby laughs.

"So how much time do we have?" she asks.

Ray glances at his watch. "About a half an hour." There's a bit of silence.

"I'm really glad you're here," Abby says, "I didn't want to spend the holiday alone. And you… I- I don't know." Ray smiles.

"I'm glad I'm here too." He puts his arm around her, "In fact, I don't think there is any other place where I would rather be right now." Abby snuggles closer to Ray. They sit wrapped up together for a while and Abby starts to doze off.

"Abby. Abby wakeup. There are two minutes until midnight."

Abby opens her eyes and smiles at Ray.

"Do you want to celebrate with the kids wine?" he asks her.

"Sure."

Ray quickly pours two glasses of the wine and they both go out and stand on the fire escape. A few floors below, people are counting down to the New Year.

"Thirty seconds," one of them says. Abby looks into Ray's eyes and realizes just how much she wants everything to work out. Ray takes her hand in his and smiles.

"Ten, nine, eight, seven…"

Her heart is beating a million beats per second, and she's sure that Ray can hear it.

"Three, two, one…"

Abby and Ray leaned in close and softly kiss one another.

"Happy New Year!"

Abby breaks the kiss and smiles. "Happy new year."

"I'm happy," Ray says, "You have no idea how long I have wanted to do that." He cups her face in his hands and lowers his lips to hers.

"Get a room!" someone yells from across the alley.

"What do you say?" Ray asks, "Should we take his advice?" Abby smiles and nods. They climb through the window into the apartment. "Wait," Ray says, "There's something else I've always wanted to do."

"What?" Abby asks. Ray scoops her up into his arms and carries her to the bedroom.


	7. Alone?

Hi everyone. Sorry it took me so long to update; I promise there will be more chapters soon. I hope you all like this one. I'm starting to run out of ideas, so if there is anything that anyone would like to see happen, let me know I'll try to work it in. Thank you all.

Ray is lying on his side on the bed, staring at Abby who is now wearing only a bra and underwear.

"Abby?" he whispers.

"Hmm?"

"You're beautiful," he says running a hand along her side, "You're absolutely beautiful." Abby smiles at him and leans forward. Ray feels her lips gently graze against his own, sending chills up his spine. Slowly, almost tentatively, Abby pushes her tongue through his lips. Ray slides his arm around her back and pulls her on top of himself. Abby breaks the kiss and smiles.

"I seem to remember this position from game night."

Ray laughs and pushes a strand of hair out of her face. "So," he says staring into her eyes, "Is it official? Are you and I a 'we'?" Abby looks at him funny. "You know, are we together now?" Abby smiles once she figures out what he's talking about.

"I guess you could say that, even though you haven't ask me yet," Abby says sitting up, still straddling him.

"You're going to make me ask you aren't you?" Ray asks raising an eyebrow. Abby nods. Ray sits up and wraps his arms around her. "Susan was right, this is just like high school." Abby shoots him a look. "Okay, okay! Let's see… Abby, will you do me the honor of becoming my girlfriend?" Abby sits there and thinks for a moment.

"Ray, I would love nothing better," she smiles. Ray kisses her and rests his forehead against hers. He runs his hands along her sides, caressing every inch of her soft skin, taking it all in. His lips find her neck where he places random soft kisses. Abby feels Ray's hands slide up her back to the clasp of her bra.

"Ray," she says. Ray looks up into her eyes. "What do you think you're doing?" She laughs. "Is someone horny?" He nods and kisses her neck again, slowly moving down to her collarbone.

"How about we just fool around a little bit?" he asks with a smile. Abby rolls her eyes.

"You just don't give up Barnett."

Ray smiles and rolls Abby onto her back. "Shoot I forgot to ask you, you're not into that creepy dominatrix stuff are you?" Abby shakes her head. "Good," Ray says with a sigh of relief.

"That's funny, I could see you enjoying being dominated by a woman," Abby smiles.

"It all depends on the situation you see," Ray explains, "I wouldn't mind if you wanted to tie me up and have your way with me, but I don't want you spanking me with a wooden paddle and leather whips or whatever… But you know, you would be awfully cute in the little leather outfit."

"Ray?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up and kiss me."

"Now that's what I like," Ray says as he leans down and kisses her. He slides his hand up her stomach and over her breast. "Abby," he whispers as he reaches for the clasp of her bra once again. Abby nods in response and Ray removes it. _Someone has obviously had some practice at that. _Abby thinks. "Oh God Abby," he groans looking at the entire length of her body, " You're gorgeous." Abby blushes.

"You're just saying that so we -,"

"No, Abby," Ray interrupts, "I don't care what we do. Hell we could go to sleep right now and I'd be a happy man. I care about you Abby Lockhart and I don't want to hurt you." Abby smiles at him.

"Well Ray," she whispers, "I'm not ready to go to sleep." She sits up and tugs on his boxers.

"Abby … are you sure?"

"Yes Ray," she answers with a smile. Ray removes his boxers and leans in to kiss her. The kiss quickly intensifies; their tongues are soon dancing together. Ray hooks his fingers onto Abby's underwear and slowly pulls them down her legs.

"Abby we don't have to," Ray says as he kisses her neck.

"Ray I want to," Abby says.

Ray lowers himself onto Abby and continues to kiss her neck and collarbone. He positions himself and gives Abby one last kiss before sliding in.

Ray is lying in bed next to Abby, watching her sleep. He leans in and gently presses his lips against hers. "Abby you are so beautiful," he whispers as he runs a finger along her cheek. He traces the outline of her lips and kisses her forehead. "I want to lie here with you forever," he says as he wraps his arms around her, "But I can't… damn I hate work."

He stands up slowly, trying not to wake Abby, and searches for his clothes that have been scattered around the room. After dressing, Ray writes a note and sets it on the bed next to Abby. He gives her one last kiss on the forehead and leaves.

Abby opens her eyes to an empty space next to her in the bed.

"I knew he'd leave," she says, "He's just like every other man; he didn't care last night. Hell, he probably would have said anything to score." She sighs. "Abby, you are so stupid." She gets out of bed and goes to the bathroom to take a shower.

Abby stands beneath the warm stream of water, praying that it will wash everything away. Her tears roll down her cheeks as she leans against the wall and sobs.

Abby walks into the ER at 7:55 am and goes directly to the lounge, trying to avoid everyone. No luck.

"So," Susan says entering the lounge, "How was your night with Ray?" Abby looks at her and then continues to get ready for work. "Come on Abby, spill it. I know you two were together last night. Did you watch some movies or did you guys decide to have some more one-on-one time?"

"It's time for work," Abby says as she puts her stethoscope around her neck and walks out of the lounge.

"Wow, someone's got her panties in a twist!" Susan exclaims walking out of the lounge. Standing at the admit desk, Abby glances up to see Ray examining a female patient.

"She's got to be eighteen years old," Abby whispers, "Just like Ray likes them. Well I hope they're happy together." She storms away from the desk almost pushing Carter to the floor.

"Whoa, what's wrong with her?" he asks handing a chart to Susan.

"I don't know," Susan answers, "I asked her about her night with Ray and she didn't seem very happy."

"Hold on a minute… Ray? As in the cocky one who works here?"

"That's the one," Susan says.

"What is he doing with Abby? She's not exactly his type, you know. He's probably after a quick score. Well I'll make sure that nothing-"

"Carter!" Susan snaps, "Stay out of this; it's something that Abby needs to work out by herself."

"But Susan she-,"

"Not another word Carter. Why do you care anyway? You had your chance," Susan smirks. Carter stands before her dumbfounded.

"I- I don't know!" he stammers, "She probably didn't have any fun last night anyway. I mean she doesn't even like Ray."

"Oh you'd be surprised," Susan mumbles. Ray walks up to the desk.

"Good morning Carter, Susan."

"You son-of-a-," Carter starts to say.

"Ray, what did you and Abby do last night?" Susan asks, interrupting Carter.

"Oh you know, the usual New Years stuff," Ray answers with a smirk. His entire body was still on fire from Abby's touch.

"Well whatever it is, Abby seems upset over it," Susan says, "You must have done something."

"Are you serious? I thought she liked it," Ray says as he walks off looking for Abby.

"You know Abby's going to kill him right?" Carter says.

"Yeah," Susan responds, "But I don't care because right now I am officially off the clock and I am out of here."

"What you don't want to stay and watch the bloodshed?"

" Carter I have been here for twenty four hours and I need to be back here tomorrow at eight. I need sleep, my family needs me, I need to be at home," Susan says walking away.

"Abby, Abby stop!" Ray shouts catching up to her in the hallway; he grabs her arm. "Are you okay?" Abby throws his hand off.

"Leave me alone Ray. Don't you have any work to do?" She starts walking away.

"Abby what's wrong?" he asks grabbing her arm again.

"You want to know what's wrong Ray? Okay… maybe I'm a little bit upset because you and I had sex last night and you left me. You know what, you are such an ass, Ray Barnett. I- I thought you were different. I thought that maybe we… Just don't talk to me anymore, ever." Shewalks away leavingRay in the middle of the hallway.


	8. The note

Hello again everyone! Here's another chapter. Chapters 8 and 9 are bascially going to befiller chapters just to advance the Rabby relationship. I promise there will be some excitement to come in future chapters. I'd like to thank Striker20 for the review; it's going to be very helpful in my upcoming chapters. Thanks!

* * *

Abby walks through the door of her apartment and flops down on the couch. She had managed to avoid Ray for the rest of her twenty-two hour shift after the little incident in the hallway.

"Neela! Are you home yet?" There's no answer. Abby shrugs and glances over at the answering machine; it's flashing seventeen. She presses the button.

"Hi Abby it's Ray. I couldn't talk to you at work, so I just wanted to leave this message to tell you-," Abby presses the skip button. "Abby it's me again. I work until ten this morning. Please-," Skip. "Abby please just call me-," Skip. "Please call me when you get this-," Abby turns off the answering machine.

"I can't handle this," she says laying a hand over her eyes. There's a knock at the door. "What the hell." Abby grumbles the entire way to the door. She opens the door to find Neela.

"Hi Abby! I missed you," Neela says, "Sorry I would have opened the door myself, but my arms are full. How was New Years Eve? How's Ray?"

"Oh Neela, you don't want to know," Abby says sitting down on the couch.

"It can't be that bad Abby. It's not like you slept with him right."

"Right, right," Abby says looking away. Neela goes to her bedroom. "Why are you home so late?"

"My first flight home was cancelled because of snow and I had to wait for another one. I hate this weather. Abby where do you want me to put that necklace I borrowed from you?" Neela calls. Abby walks to her room.

"I'll throw it on my dresser," she says. Abby walks into her own room with the necklace and glances at the bed. She shakes her head and tosses the necklace on her dresser. As she's leaving the room, a piece of paper catches her eye. Her name is scribbled on the front and on the opposite side is a note.

_Abby,_

_Sorry I have to leave so early; work is calling. You have no idea how much I would rather stay in bed with you and listen to your heartbeat or to feel the rise and fall of your body when you breathe. I didn't want to wake you when I left; you looked so peaceful. I'll see you when you come to work today._

_XOXOXO,_

_Ray_

_P.S. I miss you already._

Abby wipes a tear off her cheek. _I really fucked up this time._

"Neela, I have to go do something; it's important. I'll be back," she says getting up to leave. Neela walks into the living room to see the door close.

"Right when I get home she leaves."

The El ride to the ER seems to take days but she finally makes it. Abby marches through the doors of the ER and spots Ray at the admit desk. _He won't forgive me._ She thinks.

"Abby what are you doing here? Didn't your shift end two hours ago?" Susan asks, "Wait let me guess, are you here to work a double shift or, better yet, are you here so I can go home?"

"Susan, didn't you just get here?"

"Yeah, but that's beside the point. So, why are you here?"

Abby sniffs. "I need to talk to Ray."

"Good luck with that," Susan says. "After he talked to you this morning, he hasn't said another word to anyone else."

Abby sighs, "I have to talk to him though." She walks up to the admit desk. "Ray," she whispers, "We need to talk." Ray rolls his eyes.

"What are you talking about Abby? We talked this morning and you made it perfectly clear that you never want to speak to me again." He walks away.

"Ray stop," Abby says chasing after him, "I'm sorry. I didn't know that you left a note. I thought that you had your one night of fun and left me. Ray. Ray please. I really am sorry; I was scared because… because I feel special when I'm with you Ray. When you kissed me last night I- I wanted to laugh, I wanted to cry everything felt just right, perfect. Ray, when I woke up alone this morning, it felt like I was just a quick score for you; I thought I was getting hurt again. I just… I just can't handle that." Ray stares into her eyes.

"You think I was just after a quick score? Abby, last night I told you that I care about you and I meant it; I still do. I'd never want to do anything to hurt you." He cups Abby's face in his hands. "You're so beautiful." Ray closes the distance between them and places his lips on hers.

Susan enters exam one and walks up to Luka.

"You owe me twenty bucks," she says.

"Why?" Luka asks.

"Because Abby and Ray made up," Susan smiles, "I knew they would."

"That's an ER record isn't it?" Luka asks as he writes on the chart in his hand. Susan nods and glances out at Ray and Abby.

"They're still making up out there… wait no, they're moving to the lounge."

Ray is standing with his back against the lockers holding Abby in his arms.

"You know," he whispers, "We just let the whole ER know that we're together."

"So what," Abby says resting her head against his chest, "That'll leave fewer topics for the ER rumor mill. I can't wait until the rumor about me being pregnant goes around." Ray smiles and leans in to kiss her.

"I just wanted to let you know that you are still here for two more hours."

Ray and Abby turn to see Susan poking her head into the lounge.

"You're not done working yet Barnett; you've got patients waiting."

"Yeah, yeah I'll be right there," Ray says. He turns to Abby. "Why don't you go home and I'll call you later."

"Okay," Abby says with a yawn. Ray wraps his arms around her waist and they kiss.

"Ray you've got patients waiting," Susan says again.

"I'm coming okay?!" Ray exclaims as he and Abby walk out of the lounge, "I'll talk to you later Abby." He gives her one last kiss before picking up a chart and heading to exam three.

Abby walks into the apartment and sees Neela sitting on the couch flipping through the channels.

"I thought you'd never come home. Do you realize how long you've been gone?" Neela asks.

"Sorry Mom, I had to straighten things out with Ray. I said some things today that weren't very nice and I just wanted to make everything better."

Neela gives her a look. "Well you and Ray have certainly been spending a lot of time together lately. What's going on?"

"Neela, nothing is going on. Ray and I are… well, we… Okay, I guess you could say that Ray and I are together." Neela's jaw drops.

"I go away for a week and this happens. I need to stop leaving," she says, "The next time I leave, I'll come back to you two being married."

Abby laughs. "No Neela, we're not that serious. Maybe once I can get Johnny Depp out of the picture I'll have a chance."

"What's with Johnny Depp?" Neela asks, "Do you have some freaky obsession with him or something?"

"I don't have the obsession, Ray does," Abby says laughing.

"Now that is a problem," Neela says. Abby laughs again. She stretches her arms up over her head and yawns.

"Well I'm exhausted. If Ray calls, wake me up please."

"Will do," Neela says.

Abby smiles, "Thanks. Goodnight Neela."

"Night Abby," Neela says watching her friend go to the bedroom.

Neela is sitting on the couch watching an infomercial for hair removal when the intercom buzzes, causing her to jump.

"Why can't we just be left alone?" Neela asks herself as she walks to the intercom. "Hello?"

"Hey, is this Neela?"

"Yes," Neela answers.

"Hey Neela, It's Ray. Could you buzz me up please?"

Neela groans but buzzes him up. Within minutes, Ray is at the door.

"What are you doing here Ray?" Neela asks closing the door.

"Well, I told Abby that I would call her after work but I wanted to see her so I came here instead of going home," Ray says with a smirk, "Where is she?"

"Abby went to sleep a while ago. She's in there," Neela answers pointing to Abby's bedroom.

"Well goodnight Neela. Oh, and thank you for buzzing me in."

Neela watches Ray disappear into Abby's room.

"You're welcome," she answers flopping down on the couch, "I need some love."

Ray removes his jacket and slowly makes his way to Abby's bed, trying not to wake her up. He gently lies down next to Abby and slides a hand over her waist. Abby opens her eyes and turns to look at Ray.

"Good morning," Ray whispers as he plants a kiss on her lips, " I'm so glad I came here instead of going home." Abby smiles at him.

"Me too," she answers. Ray leans down and gently sucks on her neck. "Ray, did anyone ever tell you that I am not a morning person?" Ray shakes his head. "Well I'm not." Abby laughs. "Stop, that tickles! Anyway, I'm not the most pleasant person to be around in the morning, especially when I've had fewer than three hours of sleep."

"And your point is?" Ray asks as he continues to kiss her neck.

"My point is that I am going to be a bitch if you don't let me sleep for a little while. Why aren't you tired? You worked like 26 hours; go to sleep."

"I'm not tired," Ray says, "Seeing you has gotten me all energized; I'm ready for action."

"Well you're not getting any action from me," Abby says as she closes her eyes, "I need some sleep. I seriously cannot function properly without it."

"You're kidding right?"

"No I'm not kidding," Abby answers, "How about letting me get a couple more hours of sleep before I have to go work a 36 hour shift? Maybe I'll even let you have a repeat of New Years Eve."

"Okay," Ray says settling down next to her, "You really know how to reason with me you know."

"I know," she smiles, "And thank you." Ray wraps his arms around Abby's waist and nuzzles his nose into her neck.

Abby opens her eyes and glances over at the alarm clock. 3:30 pm. She groans.

"I don't want to go to work ever again," she whines waking Ray up. She buries her face into his chest, "Call in for me."

"I can't do that, they'll know it's me calling," Ray says pushing a stray lock of hair behind Abby's ear, "I don't have a very feminine voice like you do." He smiles at her and pushes her down onto the bed, pinning her arms down.

"Oh no, help. An evil man has kidnapped me and is going to rape me here in this bed," Abby jokes. Ray smirks.

"I didn't know you were into the role playing stuff Lockhart. That's very sexy. We should play doctor. I can be the brave, manly doctor and you can be the weak patient. I'll save your life and you can repay me with a little bit of the old in out, in out."

"Someone has obviously watched _A Clockwork Orange _one too many times," Abby says.

"At least it's not a Johnny Depp movie right?" Ray asks pulling Abby's shirt up over her head. She laughs. "What?" Ray asks, "I just want to look at your great body some more."

"Shut up Ray," Abby laughs. Ray takes her into his arms and kisses her.

"You do have a great body, Abby. You're beautiful," Ray whispers. Abby rolls her eyes. "Learn to accept a compliment Abby. You deserve every one that you get."

"Even the ones from that old man who likes to grab my ass?"

"Well, just let me know about that guy and I'll make sure that he isn't able to grab your ass ever again." He reaches down and pulls her pants down. "After all I'm the only one who should be able to do that."

"We've only been together for two days and you already own my butt," Abby says

"Can I own these too?" Ray asks as he removes her bra. Abby laughs.

"A little selfish aren't we?"

"No… well maybe," Ray says, "But can you blame me? Don't _you_ want to have _me_ all to yourself?"

"Uh, sure," Abby says kissing him, "So, when do you work today?"

"I don't," Ray says wrapping his arms around her, "I have off, so we can spend all night together."

"I wish we could," Abby says, "But Ialready told you that I have to work tonight. Actually, Ihave to go to work in three hours. I can't believe I have a thirty-six hour shift and then I get to come home and sleep for eight hours and then I get to do it all over again. Doesn't that sound exciting?"

"That really sucks," Ray says, "I have the next two days off. Looks like we won't be seeing each other for a while." They both sit there in silence for a minute. "Well I guess we might as well make the most of the time we have."He rolls over on top of Abby and starts kissing her neck. Abby smiles to herself. _I love this._


	9. The truth comes out

Hi everyone! Here's chapter nine; it's a bit shorter than the last chapter. (Sorry) I hope you all enjoy it, and please continue to review.

* * *

Abby walks into the empty ER and looks around. Everything seems to be moving in slow motion. Sam is leaning lazily against the admit desk talking to Luka while Carter and Weaver are busy discussing a chart.

"Great, another slow day at the ER," Abby says walking to the lounge. She passes Carter and Weaver giving them both a smile.

"Did you hear about Abby and Ray?" Kerry asks, "Supposedly they're dating now. I never saw that one coming."

"Kerry, would you please excuse me for a minute?" Carter asks, "I need to talk to Abby." Kerry nods and watches Carter walk away.

"Abby!" Carter shouts causing her to turn around. She smiles at him. "How are you?" he asks as they both enter the lounge.

"I'm pretty good," Abby replies with another smile, "How are you?"

"Fine," Carter quickly answers, "Look, we need to talk." Abby looks at him, her smile slowly fades.

"About what?"

"You and Ray," Carter answers. Abby's jaw drops and she stares at Carter in amazement. Just as she's about to say something, she's interrupted.

"Not so fast." Abby and Carter both turn to Susan who is perched on the couch. "I get to be the first to hear about what's going on between Abby and Ray. I am the one who told Abby to go for it, after all." Abby rolls her eyes and laughs.

"She's right Carter," she says. Susan smiles sweetly at him.

"Carter, we need some privacy if you don't mind."

"Of course I don't mind," he says trying his best to fake a smile as he leaves the lounge. Once Carter is gone and the door shuts, Susan turns to Abby.

"Okay, spill it," she says with a smirk, "And don't try to tell me that nothing is going on. I saw the little rendezvous in the hallway this morning." Abby blushes and turns away.

"He's wonderful, Susan," she says with a smile, "I'm so happy; he makes me feel this way. It's so hard to explain. I want to tell everyone about how happy I am; it's wonderful and-,"

"Hold on, hold on," Susan says trying to calm Abby down, "Before you go out telling the entire world about your happiness, how about you tell me about New Years Eve. I know something exciting happened." Abby blushes again, her cheeks turning an even darker shade of red.

"I knew it!" Susan exclaims, "You guys had sex didn't you?"

"Susan, at least let me tell you the story before you start celebrating. Now, where was I?" Abby pauses for a moment. "Well, we drank some kids wine on the fire escape and we kissed and then we-," Abby looks over at Susan who is listening intently.

"What, what did you do?" she asks.

"You know," Abby says. Susan stares at her blankly. "Susan, we had sex!"

"I knew it!" Susan exclaims again, "How was it? I bet it was great especially since you haven't done that in a while."

"Susan you're awful," Abby says, "Why do you have to keep tallies on my sex life?"

"Well it's true, isn't it?" Susan asks.

"Yes," Abby mumbles.

"So, you and Ray are together… kind of weird isn't it?"

"Yeah," Abby answers walking over to her locker, "Especially because I used to hate his frickin' guts." Susan laughs. "But it was so romantic Susan; you should have been there."

"Actually I'm kind of glad I wasn't there; I don't want to watch you and Ray in the sack," Susan states. Abby rolls her eyes.

"Not that, you perv… I'm talking about when he kissed me. I've never felt like that before."

Susan smiles at Abby's enthusiasm. "I think you've found a good one Abby." Carter pokes his head into the lounge.

"I'm sorry to interrupt this joyous moment," he says, "But we have a trauma coming in; bicycle meets an SUV, ETA three minutes."

"We'll be right there," Susan says. Abby walks to her locker and pulls out her white lab coat.

"Do you think he feels the same way about me?"

"What? Who?" Susan asks.

"Ray," Abby says, "Do you think he feels the same way about me?" She and Susan walk out of the lounge.

"I'd say he definitely feels the same way about you," Susan replies, "I think he's mad about you." Abby smiles.

"Thanks Susan," Abby says, "That's exactly what I wanted to hear." They walk to the ambulance bay and arrive just in time to receive the incoming trauma.

Abby sits at the admit desk, resting her head on her hand. She watches the second hand on the clock slowly make its way around. _At this pace, my shift is never going to end._ Abby groans and lays her head down on the desk.

"What's wrong Abby?" Neela asks sitting down next to her.

"I've been here for six hours but I still have thirty to go," Abby whines, "Why can't the time go by faster?" She bangs her head against the desk.

"What's wrong with her?" Pratt asks, "Is she having a little bit of Ray withdrawal?" Abby sits up and shoots him a look. "Whoa, whoa! Sorry Abby," he says walking away, "I'll make sure to avoid you for the rest of the day."

"Make it the rest of your life!" Abby shouts.

Abby pushes the door to the apartment open and walks in. She stumbles blindly through the living room as she attempts to find her way to the bedroom. Neglecting to take off her coat or shoes, she collapses onto her bed in an exhausted heap. Her eyelids flutter, fighting impending sleep in a losing battle. Ray walks into the bedroom and sits down next to Abby.

"What are you doing here Ray?" Abby asks.

"Neela gave me her key so that I could be here when you got home," Ray answers, "You don't look comfortable; let me help you out of your jacket." He stands her up, removes her clothing and helps her into a pair of pajamas. "Abby you can lie down now," he says helping her into bed. Abby lays her head on the pillow and smiles at Ray as he kisses her forehead. "Goodnight." Ray climbs into the bed next to Abby and listens as her heartbeat begins to slow down and her breathing becomes deeper and more regular. He watches her eyes flutter and dart beneath her eyelids; dreams have already begun to set in.

* * *

Abby and Carter walk out of the trauma room together.

"God, that was sad," Abby says, "Those are the kinds of cases I hate getting. That little girl didn't deserve to die."

"Does anybody really deserve to die?" Carter asks.

"You know what I mean Carter," Abby says, "She was hit by a drunk driver; she didn't have a chance." They walk in silence up to the admit desk. The board was clear and there were no incoming traumas.

"You want to get some coffee and talk?" Carter asks, "We never did get to talk yesterday." Abby nods. She and Carter walk to the lounge and sit down. "So," Carter starts, "How's it going?"

"Pretty good," Abby answers.

"I'll just get right down to what I want to talk about," Carter says, "What's going on with you and Ray." Abby smiles.

"I'm pretty sure you've heard everything already Carter," Abby says. Carter shakes his head.

"Stop playing games Abby, I want to know."

"Carter, why does this bother you so much? Ray and I are dating, okay?" Abby asks. Carter looks upset. "Just let me live my life Carter," Abby says, "I'm happy right now; Ray makes me happy." Carter looks away and then stands up.

"I can see you're happy," Carter says, "But how long is it going to last? What happens when your mom decides to show up and Ray meets her? What if he decides he doesn't want to see you anymore?"

"It depends, is he going to dump me through a letter?" Abby hisses as she storms to the door. Carter grabs her arm.

"You're still upset about that aren't you?" he asks.

"No," Abby says shaking his hand off, "I got over that just like I got over you. I think you're the one who is upset here. You're upset because for once in my life I am truly happy and you're jealous." She turns and storms out of the lounge. Carter slowly walks out after her, but stops when he sees Abby and Ray standing together at Admit. He watches as Abby smiles and plants a kiss on Ray's lips. If only her happiness was contagious.


	10. Walking home

Here it is; chapter ten, aren't you all excited?

I wanted to let everyone know that the last section of chapter nine is not a dream.

Chapter ten is set about a month and a half after chapter 9. The date is February 13th. I hope you all like this chapter, difinitely not one of my better ones. This is a short one again (sorry) I had to split chapter 10 up; it was getting too long.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed thus far; it's very encouraging. Please, keep the reviews coming.

Enjoy!

* * *

Snow is falling softly to the ground and the city is quiet. Ray is briskly walking down the street carrying a box of doughnuts. He has a skip in his step and surprises up his sleeve. Ray walks into the ER at three in the morning greeting everyone around with a smile.

"Good morning Frank," he says, " How about some doughnuts?" Frank eyes the doughnuts and then takes the entire box from Ray.

"Why are you in such a good mood today?"

"Well, tonight I get to spend some time with someone I haven't seen in a while," Ray answers looking around, "By the way, where's Abby?" Frank takes a bite out of a doughnut and points a powdered sugar covered finger toward the lounge.

"Weaver sent her to get some sleep. The girl looked like she needed a little rest." He takes another bite of the doughnut.

"Thanks," Ray says while walking to the lounge. Abby is lying on the couch, covered by her coat. Ray sits on the edge of the couch and runs a hand along Abby's cheek. She opens her eyes and gives Ray a sleepy smile.

"Hello Stranger," she croaks wrapping her arms around his neck, "I've missed you." Ray kisses her and nuzzles her neck.

"I've missed you too," he answers, "How long have you been sleeping?" Abby glances at her watch.

"Twenty minutes, and I'm not going back out there. I don't want this nap time to end."

"I want it to end," Ray says, "So that you can go out there and finish your shift and you can go home and relax. And you have two days off."

"Oh, that's exactly what I need. I'm going to sleep the entire time," Abby says smiling.

"What about me?" Ray asks with puppy dog eyes. He watches Abby stretch her arms above her head, arching her back like a cat.

"You can sleep too, if you want."

"I'd rather do something else," Ray says climbing on top of her, "If you know what I mean." He raises his eyebrows.

"You are so bad," Abby says laughing and playfully punching him.

"But you still love me," Ray says.

"Love?" Abby asks. Ray nods and smiles.

"What you don't love me?" he jokes.

"Yes. No. I just mean that I-,"

"I'm kidding," Ray laughs. He kisses her. "Oh guess what."

"I don't know, tell me," Abby says.

"I have a little surprise for you," Ray says.

"I hate surprises," Abby whines.

"Well I'm not telling you anything," Ray smirks, "You'll just have to wait and see." Abby frowns.

"Ray, I hate surprises."

"Oh poor baby," Ray says kissing her, "I'm still not telling you." Abby gives him a pouty face. Weaver walks into the lounge and sees Ray's strange position.

"Barnett, I don't want to know what you're doing to the couch, I just want your ass out there taking care of patients in two minutes." She turns and leaves. Ray sighs and stands up.

"Well I guess I should get to work; are you coming?" he asks.

"No way," Abby says, "I am taking full advantage of this nap privilege." She smiles sweetly at Ray. Ray smiles at her as he leaves the lounge.

* * *

"Hey Ray, have you seen Abby?" Susan asks.

"She was sleeping in the lounge," he answers, "But that was at least two hours ago." Susan walks into the lounge. Abby is lying on her stomach on the couch with her mouth hanging open. Susan shakes her head and whacks Abby's butt.

"Not now Ray," Abby mumbles.

"Wake up sleepy head."

"No… don't want to," Abby mumbles into the pillow. Susan shakes her shoulder.

"Abby you've been sleeping for more than two hours; it's time to get up."

"How about another two hours?" Abby asks.

"Abby get up and work the rest of your shift; then you can go home and get ready for the surprise that Ray has planned," Susan says exasperated. Abby sits up quickly.

"You know about it?" she asks, "What is it?" Susan shakes her head. "Come on Susan, you know how much I hate surprises." Susan walks away and pours herself a cup of coffee. "How about you tell me what it is and I'll act surprised tonight?"

"Abby?" Susan says.

"Yeah?"

"Get to work," Susan answers pointing to the door, "Now."

* * *

Abby is standing at her locker checking her watch every few seconds. Ray strolls into the lounge and flashes her a smile.

"Are you ready to go?" he asks kissing her cheek.

"Why is it that lately I have to work thirty plus hour shifts and you are always getting half shifts?" Abby asks eyeing him suspiciously.

"Just lucky I guess," Ray smirks. Abby stares at him for a moment and shakes her head. "Shall we go?" Ray asks, shaking Abby from her thoughts. Abby nods and closes her locker. Ray takes her hand in his and leads her out of the lounge. On the way out they wave goodbye to their coworkers and brace themselves for the Chicago winter.

"I figured we could take a walk," Ray says, "It is a beautiful night." Abby nods in agreement. She looks down at her fingers that are intertwined with Ray's and smiles. They fit together like a puzzle. They walk down the street hand in hand and watch as the snow begins to fall faster. Abby gazes up into the night sky; it's a clear night and the stars are burning brightly.

"What's up there?" Ray asks searching for what is catching Abby's eye.

"The sky," Abby whispers with a smile. Ray can't help but chuckle to himself. Abby never ceases to amaze him. One moment she's in a trauma room saving lives, the next she's awestruck by something as seemingly simple as the sky. Abby turns to Ray. "It's so…" Abby's words are lost and fall to the ground with the snow. Ray smiles and pulls her in to a kiss; it's feather light but passionate at the same time. They both reluctantly pull away and look into each other's eyes. Ray can't help but smile at the way Abby's eyes sparkle and the way the corners of her lips curl up slightly into a smile and how the tiniest snowflakes are able to get caught in her eyelashes. He stands and looks at Abby; in much the same way she had stared at the sky moments earlier, noting the small things that can easily go unnoticed. It's those simple things that everyone else ignores that are the most amazing things in life. Ray rests his forehead against Abby's.

"You're so beautiful, you know that?" he whispers, "Everything about you… not just your face or your body, it's your personality, the way you see things in a different way than I do… you're beautiful." Abby blushes and turns away.

"Ray, you are wonderful," she says hooking her arm to his, "I don't know what I would do without you." They walk down the street, arm in arm, eager to get home. The moon is bathing the city in a silvery light that reflects off the freshly fallen snow, making the streets glow. The shadows of the two lovers dance in the moonlight, searching for the way home.


	11. Love and families

Hey everyone, here's chapter 11. Sorry it took so long to update. This chapter is slightly longer than the last one, so that's good. Once again this isn't my best work, but I promise it will improve. Anyway, enjoy chapter 11. Oh, and I figured out how to accept anonymous reviews, so please review my story. Thanks!

* * *

"Ray, may I have my surprise now?" Abby asks as she pushes the door to her apartment open. Ray shakes his head and smirks at her. Abby rolls her eyes and takes off her coat and boots. "You want anything to eat or drink?" she asks. Ray slouches onto the couch.

"Uh… coke and whatever kind of food you have; I'm starving." Abby emerges from the kitchen minutes later with sodas, a tub of ice cream and a bowl of popcorn. As she is sitting down, Ray grabs her waist and pulls her down to his lap. She glares at him but gets a smirk in return. Abby eventually settles into Ray's lap and rests her head on his shoulder. Ray feels her soft eyelashes gently brush against his skin and he wraps his arms tightly around her. He glances down to see her eyes becoming heavy with sleep.

"Time for bed?" he whispers. Abby nods and goes to her bedroom with Ray following closely behind. Ray sits on the bed and watches Abby undress. He loves the way she slowly pulls her shirt up over her head and casually drops it to the floor. "Even in a sleepy daze are you an excellent stripper, Abby," he laughs. Ray grabs her wrist and pulls her in close. His lips find their way to Abby's neck and his hands gently caress her soft skin. His touch is like electricity, sending waves of energy up Abby's spine causing her to shudder. She smiles at him with tired eyes. Ray plants tiny kisses around Abby's belly button, and he receives tiny giggles in return. Abby escapes his grasp, slumps into the bed and covers up.

"I can take a hint," Ray says walking around the bed and taking his clothes off, stopping at his boxers. He gets into the bed and kisses Abby. "Goodnight," he whispers wrapping an arm around her.

* * *

Ray is lying on his side, his head propped up on his hand, watching Abby sleep. He runs a finger along her cheek. _She doesn't look like the same Abby when she sleeps. Maybe it's innocence; when we sleep, the world doesn't have a chance to harm us. _He watches her for a while longer; her chest rising and falling with each breath she takes, the hair that frames her perfect face, the smile that somehow manages to creep onto her face. Ray glances over at Abby's alarm clock. "Oh shit!" He climbs out of the warm bed and quickly dresses.

* * *

Ray stands amidst a sea of reds, pinks, yellows, and oranges. He has a look of utter frustration on his face.

"All I need are a few roses," he grumbles, "Can't you please help me out here?" The shop owner shakes her head.

"It's Valentine's Day, all of our roses have been purchased. I'm sorry" Ray looks disappointed. He massages his forehead with his hand and turns to leave. "She's very important to you isn't she?" Ray turns back to the owner.

"Yeah…" he glances at her nametag, "… Sylvia. She's wonderful." Ray blushes a bit and plays with the petals on a flower next to him. Sylvia chuckles at his nervousness.

"You know," she says, "You don't need roses to tell her how special she is. Come on, I'll help you find something else. Now, tell me a little bit about her." Sylvia and Ray walk down an aisle together.

* * *

Abby slowly opens her eyes and looks around the bedroom. No Ray. She rubs her eye with the back of her hand and sits up in bed. She glances down at the empty space next to her. _Where did he go?_ As Abby is about to get up in search of her boyfriend gone AWOL, the bedroom door swings open and Ray walks in carrying a tray.

"Good morning and Happy Valentine's Day!" he says with a big smile, "I brought some breakfast in bed." Now it's Abby's turn to smile. "Chocolate chip pancakes." As soon as Ray sets the tray on the bed, Abby begins to dig in.

"Thank you Ray, it's wonderful," she says leaning over to kiss him, "Is this my surprise?" Ray shakes his head and smirks. Abby just rolls her eyes and then continues to eat. Ray laughs and points to his lip. Abby gives him a puzzled look. Ray leans in and kisses her, licking her lips.

"Chocolate," he says answering Abby's puzzled look, "Where did you learn to eat? Down at the farm?" Abby slaps his leg.

"You're such a jerk," she says. Ray shrugs it off.

"That's okay, I'm sure that Neela would enjoy a few more chocolate chip pancakes," he says taking in the plate away. Abby grabs it back. Ray smiles. "I have something else for you," he says, "Hold on a second, I'll go get it." He scampers out of the room and returns seconds later with his hands behind his back. "Are you ready for this?" Abby smiles and nods. Ray hands her a bouquet of yellow tulips. Her face lights up as she lowers her head to smell the flowers.

"I know they're not roses," Ray says, "But I thought that these are pretty and Sylvia told me that-,"

"Who's Sylvia?" Abby asks interrupting him.

"She's the owner of that flower shop down the street," Ray answers. Abby gives him a suspicious look. "I'm serious Abby! And besides she's like a hundred years old!" Abby laughs. "Anyway," Ray says, "Before I was so rudely interrupted, I was explaining what yellow tulips represent… May I continue?" Abby nods. "Okay, Sylvia told me that yellow tulips symbolize being hopelessly in love…" He looks into Abby's eyes. "Abby, I know we've only been together for a little while, but I think I'm falling in love with you." Abby quickly stands up.

"Um… Ray, I'll be right back, I just need to-," she says leaving the room.

* * *

Abby is sitting on her bench near the lake, thinking. She finishes the last of a cigarette and flicks the butt to the ground. As she exhales, the smoke slowly curls out from her mouth and is swept away by the light breeze. _He isn't serious; he can't love me._ She runs a hand through her hair and sighs. _Why did he have to tell me that? I can't say it back to him when I don't feel the same way. I don't think I could ever say it to another person ever again._ Abby sits on the bench for a while longer, thinking about what to do, what to say. She briefly glances over her shoulder and notices a figure walking toward her. She squints her eyes to hopefully facilitate her vision. The figure approaching her was none other than Carter. She doesn't move.

"Hey," Carter says walking up to the bench, "I'm surprised to see you here. Mind if I sit down?" Abby feigns a smile and pats the space next to her. "So how have you been doing lately?" Carter asks, "We haven't been able to talk and well I figured we could catch up on some stuff." Abby shrugs.

"I'm pretty good," she answers, "I can't complain. I'm happy." She smiles.

"Listen Abby," Carter says, "I'm sorry for what happened last month. I really am. I can tell you're happy and I know that Ray makes you happy. I regretted my words the moment they came out of my mouth, and I hope you can forgive me for what I said. I hate not being able to talk to you. And I know that I've been an ass in the past, believe me do I ever know. Please Abby, forgive me." Abby looks Carter in the eye; he is a man she once loved, a man who was her best friend, a man with many flaws. _We all have flaws._ She slowly nods her head.

"Okay John," she whispers. Carter grins ear to ear and sweeps Abby up into a hug. They settle onto the bench again and have a much needed talk. Abby feels her heart grow a little bit softer with each minute she spends with Carter. She had built up so much anger towardhim that she herself had never realized. But with each smile that appears on her face, so goes a piece of that anger.

* * *

Abby walks into the quiet apartment and tiptoes to the bathroom. A nice hot shower is all she needs; maybe then she can talk to Ray. She steps into the warm stream of water, letting it soak her hair and run down her back. Abby laughs to herself as she thinks about the time Ray got naked in front of her. _He really is too cocky for his own good. _Her mind wanders to the past month of their relationship. The hugs, the kisses, the sex… _God I love him. _Abby opens her eyes wide. _I didn't just say love._ Abby is too busy contemplating her next move that she doesn't hear the bathroom door squeak as it is pushed open. A shadow glides across the shower curtain.

"May I join you?" Ray asks, startling her, "You look like you could use some company." Abby simply nods and watches as Ray takes his clothes off. He steps into the shower and runs his hands up and down Abby's arms. "I didn't mean to scare you earlier," he whispers into her hair. "I'm sorry I- I really am." He stares into her eyes, the deep, brown pools that could swallow him whole.

"It's okay Ray," Abby says tracing his collarbone with her finger, "I was a little bit shocked I guess because… well because love… it's such a fickle thing, you know what I mean? I thought I knew what love was a long time ago, but now… I-I just don't know anymore. And I don't know if you really feel that way or if you just think you do. It's really hard Ray. It's really hard for me to just come out and say 'I love you', because of my past and because you and I really haven't been together for very long. There's so much that we don't know about each other."

"Like what Abby?" Ray asks. Abby shrugs.

"Stuff," she answers, "Do we have to talk about this in the shower?" She and Ray get out of the shower and go to her bedroom. As Abby is about to get dressed, Ray picks her up and tosses her into the bed.

"Let's cuddle for a while," he smirks, climbing into the bed, "Maybe a little pillow talk." Abby hits him with a pillow. "Hey since when has violence solved anything?" Abby shrugs and falls back onto the bed. "So, what is it that I don't know about you Abby?"

"Ray there's a lot you don't know about me," Abby answers.

"Oooh, international woman of mystery," Ray says, "That's hot." Abby rolls her eyes and buries her head into Ray's chest. "You don't want to tell me, right?" Abby nods. Ray runs his fingers through Abby's wet hair catching in a tangle every so often. Abby sighs and pulls the blanket tighter around herself. "I guess I'm okay with that Abby. I understand if you aren't comfortable with me. I thought that we were at the level where we could talk, you know."

"Ray, I'm not telling you anything," Abby says wryly. She gives him a small smile. "You can't guilt trip my into telling you anything; I'll talk when I'm ready." Ray, trying not to show he is hurt, quickly changes the subject.

"So, would you like to hear a funny story?" he asks with a smirk. Abby nods, preparing for the worst. "Well, this morning when I went to the flower shop, I wanted to buy roses for you. I had it all planned out: I would buy you these beautiful roses and present them to you over a wonderful breakfast and you would reward me with a morning of hot sex. There was one problem; the flower shop didn't have any roses left. My plan was foiled. So then I told Sylvia that I wanted to buy you something exotic. She told me that I wouldn't find anything exotic in her store and proceeded to direct me to the porn shop down the street." Abby laughs. "That's not all," Ray says, "After I bought the tulips, I made a little stop at slightly more classy "porn" shop and I bought this." He holds up a sheer black negligee. "I figured that we could use this tonight after the surprise." Abby raises her eyebrows. "Yes, I promise, you will receive your surprise tonight."

"How about a little hint," Abby pleads, "I really need to know." Ray laughs at Abby.

"You act as if you'll die if you don't find out soon," he says, "But I guess I can indulge you. We are going out for dinner tonight. I'm not telling you where or what's going to happen afterward. Does that make you happy." Abby smiles.

"Maybe a little bit," she answers climbing on top of Ray, "Tell me something, does _this _make you happy?" Ray grins.

"Do I have to answer that?" he asks.

* * *

Ray is dressed in a suit, sitting on Abby's bed where he continues to check his watch. Sweat begins to bead on his forehead as he nervously taps his foot. In the bathroom, Abby is sliding into a pair of black, silky panties and matching bra. She slowly pulls her pantyhose up her legs. Finally, the most important part. Abby slides the dress up over her hip and slides her arms into the spaghetti straps. She gazes at her reflection in the mirror and smoothes the silk chiffon over her hips and grins. Everything is as close to perfect as it can be. He hair falls down past her shoulders, the ends curling slightly; her makeup is just enough to give her face a soft glow; and the dress hugs her body in all the right places. After checking herself over one final time, Abby turns to leave the bathroom. Outside, Ray is now staring at the bathroom door, awaiting his date. Abby steps out of the bathroom and gives Ray a smile. His breath is immediately taken away. _She's perfect._ He thinks to himself._ Everything about her is perfect; her hair, her face, the dress… everything._

"God, you're beautiful," he says staring at her as if she is the only thing in the world that matters. Abby smiles again.

"Shouldn't we get going Ray?" she asks bringing Ray back from his daydreams. He nods, obviously experiencing a lack of words. He and Abby walk through the living room. "Bye Neela," Abby says to her friend as Ray is ushering her out the door.

"Have fun you two!" Neela shouts. Ray guides Abby out to his car and opens the door for her. Walking around the car, Ray lets out a breath of air and realizes that he must have been holding it in.

"Do you have any idea what you do to me?" he asks getting into the car. Abby blushes and shakes her head. They ride in silence until they pull up to the restaurant. "I figured that we would both be in the mood for Italian," Ray says taking Abby's hand in his and leading her to the restaurant.

"Wow, this place is beautiful," Abby says after being seated, "This isn't like you Ray." Ray looks at her with a confused expression. "I mean you aren't normally one to be sweet like you have been, and this doesn't exactly seem like a place where you would go. What's going on? What kind of tricks do you have up your sleeve?" Ray chuckles and shakes his head.

"Well Abby, I'll let you in on a little secret," Ray says with a smirk, "There's a lot you don't know about me." Abby frowns and rolls her eyes. Ray reaches under the table and caresses her knee. "Hey, smile," he whispers, "I love it when you smile." Abby fakes a smile and looks away. Ray moves his chair closer to Abby and then moves his hand further up her thigh. Abby turns and looks him in the eye and smiles. "There it is!" Ray says, unable to contain his excitement. He leans over and kisses her cheek. Ray pulls a crimson velvet box out of his pocket and smiles at Abby. "Are you ready for your surprise?" Abby nods. He opens the box and says, "Happy Valentines Day." Abby looks down to see a gold chain with a heart shaped pendant made of diamonds.

"Ray," she whispers, "It's beautiful. Thank you." Ray stands up and carefully puts the necklace around her neck.

"There," he says, "You make that necklace look beautiful, Abby."

* * *

Abby and Ray walk out of the restaurant hand in hand and wait for their car to be retrieved by the valet worker. They get in the car and drive away from the restaurant. Abby stares at Ray for a while until he turns to her.

"What?" he asks.

"You're awful you know that?" Abby smiles. Ray starts to give her a look. "And don't play dumb with me; you know what I'm talking about." Ray smirks. "See, I knew it!"

"So what Abby? I can't help it if my hands like to wander! Admit it, you liked what I was doing. And besides, I just figured that I gave you a gift so I might as well get one too," Ray laughs. Abby playfully punches him.

"I almost died when the waiter walked over," Abby says. Ray laughs again. Abby looks out the window and turns to Ray.

"This isn't the way home," She says. Ray nods and smiles. "Where are we going?" Ray shakes his head. "Why aren't we going home? Are you going to rape me and leave me in an alley?"

"Are we playing twenty questions?" Ray asks with a smile. He notices Abby's pout. "Okay, okay. I have some people coming over to my place tonight and I figured that we could all hang out together. I think you'll like them."

"But I thought we were going to go home and try out that little present you got me," Abby whines.

"Don't worry about that," Ray answers, "I think ahead." He reaches to the back seat and tosses the negligee to Abby. He smirks. "I plan on us having a whole lotta fun tonight." Abby places her hand on Ray's thigh and traces imaginary shapes up and down. She glances over at Ray with a little smirk.

"Here we are," Ray says pulling up outside the apartment building. They climb the three grueling flights of stairs and stumble into the apartment. "Anyone here?!" Ray shouts walking throughout the apartment. "No one's here yet." He smiles. "You know what that means right?" He wraps his arms around Abby and his lips find her neck. They collapse onto the couch together. Ray's hands feel around Abby's body as he kisses her. "Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?" he mumbles into her neck. Abby can only moan in response. Ray continues kissing Abby, moving down her neck to her collarbone where he slides the spaghetti straps of her dress off her shoulders. Soon, the top of Abby's dress is down to her waist.

"Oh God Abby," he groans placing a trail of kisses down her neck, stopping just above her bra. As Ray is reaching for the clasp of Abby's bra, he hears the sound of someone clearing her throat. He looks up. "Mom?!" Abby's eyes shoot open and she tries to cover her exposed flesh with her arms.

"We'll be right back," Ray says ushering Abby to his bedroom. Abby pulls her dress up and spins to look Ray in the eye.

"What are you parents doing here?" she hisses.

"They're here visiting," Ray answers helping her with the straps. "They are the people I told you about earlier." Abby's hand goes to her forehead.

"Ray, why didn't you tell me?!" Abby exclaims, "I'm not ready to meet your parents. Did you even tell them about me? Or did they just find out about me now when I was half naked on your couch?!"

"Of course they know about you Abby. I called and told them after our little New Years Eve rendezvous."

"You're not serious!" Abby says, "You didn't tell them everything did you?"

"Eew, no!" Ray exclaims, "I don't want my parents to know about my sex life. That's just gross." Abby smiles at him. Ray takes her hand into his and gives it a gentle squeeze. "Well, I can't just leave them out there, so I'm gonna go talk. Are you coming?" Abby shakes her head.

"Not yet, I have to get over my embarrassment," she answers, her cheeks becoming slightly red.

"Okay," Ray says kissing her forehead, "Promise me you'll come out when you're ready?" Abby nods and Ray smiles at her. Ray kisses her again and walks out of the room. Abby slumps down onto the bed and puts her head in her hands. _I can't believe I almost flashed my boyfriend's parents. _Ray steps into the living room.

"Hi Mom, hi Dad," he says hugging his mom and shaking his dad's hand. "How are you guys doing?"

"Fine, fine," his dad answers, "I see you're doing well." He glances around the apartment. His eyes fall on the bedroom door.

"Come home Ray, we miss you!" Ray's mom blurts out. Ray chuckles to himself. "We do," she says, "I miss having my baby at home."

"Mom, I'm not a baby anymore. I just got this apartment and the job at County; I can't give all of this up. And Abby, I'm not leaving her."

"What's Abby doing right now?" Dad asks, "Is she a little bit shy? That was Abby right?" Ray nods.

"Well actually she's regaining her composure right now. She wasn't exactly thrilled about you and mom seeing our little escapade on the couch," Ray says. His dad chuckles. Abby walks out of the bedroom, sits down next to Ray and smiles at his parents.

"Hi, I'm Abby," she says meekly.

* * *

Ray and Abby stand next to each other by the door of the apartment. Ray's mom hugs and kisses each of them, and his dad shakes his hand and hugs Abby.

"I'll walk you guys out," Ray says, "I'll be right back Abby." Abby watches as Ray leaves the apartment with his parents. She sits down on the couch and rests her chin on her hand. Ray walks in the front door minutes later and immediately goes to Abby. He smiles at her.

"They love you," he says. Abby smiles. "And they love you even more because you are nothing like the tramps I used to bring home." Abby laughs.

"Did they not see our little couch routine?" Abby asks incredulously. Ray smiles.

"Believe me, they've seen worse," Ray says, "Remember, I used to bring tramps home." Abby just shakes her head and laughs.

"I don't even want to know." There's a moment of silence between them. " So, is that the real reason you went outside? Just to find out if they like me?" Abby asks slyly, "For some reason I think you had an ulterior motive." Ray sighs and looks away.

"You know what, you're right," Ray answers, "I went out to get this." He pulls the negligee out of his pocket and tosses it onto the couch. He raises his eyebrows and smirks. "Why don't you go throw that on," he says. Abby smiles and walks to the bedroom. She lingers outside the bedroom for a few moments, leaning against the doorframe. She gives Ray a content little smile and walks into the room. She slides the straps of the dress off her shoulders and let's the smooth fabric fall to the floor. Abby slowly rolls her pantyhose down her legs and reaches back to unhook her bra.

"Hey Abby," Ray calls from the couch.

"Yeah?" Abby asks pulling the negligee down over her head and smoothing the soft fabric over her flat stomach.

"Did you like my parents?" Ray asks. Abby walks out of the bedroom and glides over to the couch. She sits on Ray's lap and looks into his eyes.

"Yes," she answers, "They're wonderful." Ray wraps his arms around Abby and rubs the small of her back.

"I was just thinking," Ray says, "You got to meet my family…" He kisses her neck, lightly at first but quickly increases the intensity. Abby moans softly. Ray picks her up and carries her to his bedroom where a scene, much like what happened on the couch earlier, unfolds. "Oh God Abby, you're beautiful," he murmurs pushing the lingerie up to just above her breasts.

* * *

Abby and Ray lay in bed, completely exhausted. Abby has her head resting on Ray's chest and is lost deep in thought. Ray runs his fingers through her hair and kisses the top of her head.

"Abby?" he murmurs. She shifts and looks up at him.

"Hmm?" she purrs cuddling closer to him and closing her eyes. Ray rubs his hand up and down her arm.

"I was just wondering," he says, "Well, you got to meet my family and you all liked each other. I was sort of wondering… well you know… I was just wondering when I get to meet your family."


	12. Light

Abby sits up in the bed and stares at Ray who simply smirks at her. He rubs her shoulder and trails his fingers down her back, following each bump of her spine. His hand settles at the small of her back where he gently traces small circles.

"What, are you ready for a second round?" he asks sitting up and kissing her neck. Abby stares at him in disbelief before standing up to search for her dress. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! What's wrong? Did I say something to upset you?" Ray asks trying to get Abby's attention. Abby continues to search for something to wear. She picks up the negligee and sits on the bed.

"Hey, hey where's the fire?" Ray asks, "If you don't want to have another romp in the sack, that's fine; you don't have to leave."

"Yeah actually I do, Ray," Abby says walking going to Ray's dresser and pulling out a sweatshirt. Ray gets out of the bed and pulls on his boxers.

"What are you doing?" he asks, grabbing her arm. Abby turns to him and rolls her eyes.

"I'm leaving," she answers walking out the bedroom and picking her coat off the floor. Ray follows closely behind and watches her put the coat on. Abby walks to the bedroom and shoves her pantyhose into her coat pocket.

"Abby, what's wrong?" Ray asks, "What did I do? Please just tell me so I can fix the problem." Abby turns and glares at him.

"If you don't know what you did, you should take some time to think about it and call me when you have finally figured it out," she snaps. Abby walks out the front door, leaving it open. Ray walks to the door.

"Abby, come back!" Ray shouts. He watches her walk to the stairs. "At least come back and put some pants on!" Abby storms back into the apartment, nearly knocking Ray over. She marches into his bedroom. Ray follows her and grabs a pair of sweatpants out of his dresser. "Would you please just stay here tonight? You can have my bed; I'll sleep on the couch." Abby snatches the pants out of his hands and shakes her head. "Well would you at least let me drive you home?" Abby shakes her head again. "Abby it's barely twenty degrees outside; you'll freeze to death before you get anywhere. Let me drive you." Abby rolls her eyes.

"Whatever Ray," she answers walking out of the bedroom. Ray follows her out of the apartment and down to the car. The ride back to Abby's apartment is long and quiet, almost agonizing. Ray turns to look at Abby who is staring out the window, desperately trying to avoid any kind of conversation with him.

"So," Ray says putting his hand on Abby's thigh. She violently pulls away. The car pulls up just outside of Abby's apartment. "Listen," Ray says putting the car into park, "I just wanted to let you know that,"

"Bye!" Abby says interrupting him. She steps out of the car and slams the door. Ray watches her walk up the steps and disappear into the dark building. He sits in the car, staring at the steering wheel, feeling more alone than he ever has before.

* * *

Susan walks past Abby, who is standing at admit. She stops midstride and stares at Abby while she fills out papers. Forgetting her original task, Susan walks over to the desk and leans next to Abby.

"What's going on?" she asks. Abby looks up at her with a quizzical look and continues to fill out charts. "Come on Abby, talk to me. I know something is up. There's trouble in the land of love isn't there?" Abby scoffs and rolls her eyes. "I haven't seen you or Ray say a single word to each other yet today. You two haven't mysteriously disappeared to drug lockup. I'm a little bit worried." Abby laughs.

"Susan, nothing is going on; everything is fine. We're both just a bit worn out from Valentines Day. Between you and me, I had two very eventful days off."

"Sure Abby," Susan says walking away. Abby sighs and follows Susan into the lounge. She slumps down onto the couch.

"He did a few things that I didn't really like," she confesses. Susan sits down next to her. Abby puts her head in her hands. "He wants things to move a little bit faster than I'm ready for. I just want to take things slow, you know, test the waters. I don't want to rush into anything and repeat the past again. I don't think I could handle that. Ray just doesn't seem to understand." Susan puts her hand on Abby's knee.

"What happened?" she asks rubbing Abby's shoulder trying to coax her into talking.

"You're going to laugh, Susan," Abby says forcing a smile, "You really are. I know that I'm overreacting. It's really stupid." Abby continues rambling about everything under the sun. Susan stands up and walks over to her locker. She opens it and takes out a bottle of aspirin. "Do you know what he said to me?" Abby asks forcing a laugh. Susan shakes her head and stares at Abby, waiting for her to answer. Abby stands up and walks over to the coffee machine. She turns to look at Susan, holding the coffee cup, and laughs to herself. "He told me that he loves me." Susan's eyes grow wide but she says nothing. Instead she hands the bottle of aspirin to Abby. "I-I wanted to tell him that I love him too, I really did, but I couldn't. I know I have the capacity to love him; I'm just not ready. I mean my God, it's only been a month!" She opens the bottle of aspirin and shakes some pills into her hand.

"What did you do?" Susan asks sitting down. Abby sits down next to her and stares down into her coffee.

"I had a million emotions spinning around me at once and I felt paralyzed… I didn't know what to do… so I left. You know, just to clear my mind a bit. He apologized when I went back and I figured that it would be put on the back burned for a while." She pauses to sip her coffee. "But he just couldn't leave well enough alone." Haleh pokes her head through the door.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but the waiting room is filled with angry patients demanding treatment." Abby stands up and grabs her stethoscope.

"We'll be right out Haleh," Susan says standing up. Haleh nods and leaves the lounge. "Want to talk later?" Susan asks following Abby to the door. Abby nods as they both step into the ER and stare at the sea of patients.

* * *

Abby walks out of the lounge wrapped in her coat. She walks past the admit desk and waves to Sam. She passes Susan coming out of exam two but continues toward the exit.

"Hey Abby, wait up!" Susan shouts, "What the rush to get out of here for?" Abby turns around and smiles. Susan walks up next to her and looks at her expectantly.

"Susan, this was my first eight hour shift in weeks, and I want to get out of here before it turns into a sixteen hour shift," Abby says trying to keep the annoyance from creeping into her voice. She and Susan walk through the ER towards the ambulance bay.

"When are we going to finish talking about Ray?" Susan asks, "You know, we left off at 'he just couldn't leave well enough alone…' I'm curious to find out what happened." Abby shakes her head.

"I'm leaving now, we'll talk later, okay?" Abby says stepping out into the ambulance bay. Susan puts on a pout and leans against the doorframe watching Abby walk away, her small figure growing smaller until the cold night swallows her whole. Red lights flash across the building and a piercing wail cuts through the air, alerting everyone of the arrival of an incoming trauma.

* * *

Ray stares down at the seemingly lifeless body that is lying on the gurney in front of him. He lets his mind wander to thoughts of Abby, forgetting the chaos of the ER. Carter looks up at him and frowns.

"Ray! Did you hear me?" he shouts. Ray stares at him for a moment and slowly nods. "Ray get out of here; you're just in the way! When you figure out how to get your head out of the clouds, come back." Ray pulls his gloves off while leaving the trauma room. He slowly walks over to admit and kicks the corner of the desk.

* * *

Susan walks into the lounge and Ray is sitting on the couch with his head in his hands. She sits next to Ray and sighs.

"I noticed you were having a tough time concentrating in there," she says. Ray nods but says nothing. "So what did you do wrong?" Susan asks staring down at an imaginary piece of garbage on the floor. Ray looks up into her eyes and she smirks at him. "Come on Ray," Susan says, "She's my best friend. I know when things aren't right." Ray nods. "I also knew something was up when I didn't have to send Chuny to chase you two out of drug lockup." Ray laughs halfheartedly. Susan walks over to her locker and pulls out her coat and scarf. "I'm going up to the roof for my break; care to join me? We could talk." Ray considers Susan's offer for a moment and finally nods.

The door to the roof swings open and Susan and Ray walk over to the edge of the building. They gaze down at the city below. The city lights mirror the night sky, stretching out, farther than the eye can see. Susan and Ray stand next to each other in silence clinging to the meager amount of heat emitted by the cups of coffee in their hands.

"So, do you want to talk about what's going on?" Susan asks. Ray smiles at her.

"You really are a nosey one aren't you?" he asks, "Why don't you ask Abby seeing as you two are such great friends." Susan shrugs.

"I'm not nosey. I just figured that you might want to talk about it… And I already asked Abby; we just didn't get to finish our conversation. Normally I wouldn't go around asking about these things, but I'm dying here! I really need to know what happened. Okay, maybe I'm a little bit nosey…" Ray laughs and shifts uncomfortably. He and Susan stand in silence for a while longer.

"I guess I'm an ass," Ray says breaking the silence. He glances over at Susan expecting an answer. Susan clears her throat and looks at him.

"Well the first step to recovery is admitting that there is a problem," she says with a smirk. Ray rolls his eyes and shakes his head. He looks out across the horizon and then lets his gaze fall down to the cup in his hands.

"And people say that I'm the jerk," he mumbles. He takes a drink. "I thought that things were going well enough between Abby and me. I-I don't know, I guess I dropped a bomb on her the other day… several times. He looks over at Susan who is studying him.

"What did you do?" Susan asks. Ray smirks and laughs to himself.

"What was that about you not being nosey?" he asks. Susan sighs and rolls her eyes.

"Continue please!" she exclaims. Ray laughs.

"Okay, okay. Well, on Valentines Day I went out and bought Abby some flowers and,"

"Ha! I didn't get any flowers. Shows how much people appreciate me!" Susan exclaims interrupting Ray.

"Excuse me," Ray says, "You wanted to hear this story, so you are going to sit there and listen. Nosey." Susan sticks her tongue out at him. "Anyway," Ray starts, "After I gave her the flowers, I told her,"

"I know this part already," Susan says interrupting him again, "You told her that you love her and then she freaked out and ran away the end." Ray stares at her incredulously. "Remember Ray, I talked to Abby earlier today." He rolls his eyes. "But seriously, what were you thinking Ray!" Susan exclaims. Ray shrugs, searching for words. "Have you ever had a girlfriend before?"

"Susan, you are talking to the ultimate ladies man, of course I've had a girlfriend before! I've had a ton," Ray answers getting a bit too cocky for his own good. He laughs to himself.

"How many of those past girlfriends did you say 'I love you' to?" Susan asks. Ray thinks for a little bit.

"I don't know," he answers, "A lot of them I guess. Why does that matter?" Susan ignores his question and continues her interrogation.

"How may of those 'I love yous' weren't real, just empty words?" she asks. Ray doesn't answer. "Ray, don't you get it?" Susan asks, "You don't say those words to a woman who you've been dating for a month; it's not enough time to develop trust, especially not for Abby. Just, give her some time, she hasn't been in a relationship for a while and her past relationships just haven't been the greatest. She has trouble trusting people."

"Yeah, it's going to be a while before she trusts me again," Ray says, "I royally fucked up any chances of a relationship with her." Susan looks at him, confusion playing across her face. "I had a little surprise meeting set up between her and my parents," Ray says to his coffee cup. Susan massages her forehead with her hand and sighs. "And then I asked her when I get to meet her family." Susan sighs again.

"Please tell me that you didn't do that!" she exclaims. Ray looks at her with no emotion on his face. "Oh Ray why did you do that? Are you really that stupid?" He simply nods.

* * *

Neela and Abby are sitting on their couch watching television. There's a bowl of popcorn, a few cans of coke, and a half eaten pizza sitting on the floor in front of them. The two women are engrossed in the television show. Neela scrunches her face into a frown.

"I don't get it," she says picking up the bowl of popcorn from the floor and setting it between Abby and herself. She grabs a handful of the fluffy kernels and eats them one by one. "Why does the coyote continue to pursue the roadrunner when it is obvious that he will never succeed in catching it?" Abby shrugs and takes a drink of her soda.

"I don't know, but I've got a better question. Why are we watching this?" She picks up the remote and changes the channel. "We have how many channels that probably air programs that are somewhat good for the mind or are at least somewhat entertaining, and we choose this? Are we crazy?" Neela ignores Abby's questions and attempts to change the subject.

"I heard that Ray's band has a gig coming up," she says. Abby nods. Neela looks over at Abby, trying to read her. Abby becomes conscious of Neela's gaze and turns to stare back. A slight smile creeps onto her lips.

"What?" she asks, "What did I do?"

"Nothing," Neela answers turning back to the television. Abby shrugs and grabs a slice of pizza. "A penny for your thoughts," Neela mumbles still staring at the television. Abby looks at her in confusion.

"Uh, well…" she stutters, "I-I'm not really thinking about anything right now."

"What about Ray?" Neela asks. Abby stares at her blankly. "He's been the only thing you have talked about for the past month and now nothing; not even when _I_ bring him up. Abby, what's going on?" Abby chuckles.

"I don't know, Neela," she says picking at her pizza, "I guess I just need a break from Ray for a little while." Neela only nods slightly "What time do you have to go in to work?" Abby asks. Neela peeks at her watch and groans.

"Now," she whines. Abby laughs at her friend's little "tantrum" and then becomes sympathetic.

"I'm sorry Neela," she says, "I-I hope you have fun." Neela smiles and rolls her eyes.

"Yeah, maybe I'll get a patient with projectile vomiting or explosive diarrhea," she jokes as she stands up and retrieves her coat and scarf.

"Hey, don't be an underachiever," Abby laughs, "Go for the gold and pray for a patient who has both."

"Will do," Neela answers walking to the door, "I'll see you tomorrow then. Goodnight Abby."

"Bye Neela," Abby says watching the door close. She stands up and slowly gathers the dishes from where they lay in front of her. She pads softly across the cold floor into the kitchen where she sets the dishes down. Abby walks through her apartment, turning off the lights, along with the television. She steps into the empty bedroom and sighs. She turns the lights off and slips between the cold sheets. The darkness is thick, almost suffocating, clinging to her throat with each breath she takes. There aren't going to be any late night talks or cuddling tonight, just loneliness that weighs down heavily on her chest.

* * *

Ray is sitting at admit with his head resting on the desk. The entire ER is placid and has been for hours. Chuny and Haleh sit at the opposite end of the desk watching Ray.

"What do you think is wrong with him?" Chuny whispers. Haleh shrugs. Sam joins them in the staring game. Ray picks his head up and looks over at the three women. Without saying a word, he drops his head back onto the desk. The tiny ticks from the second hand of his watch echo deep within his brain, and every second is more agonizing than the last. Ray feels a hand on his shoulder; he looks up to meet Susan's eyes.

"Ray, why don't you go home," she offers, "We're dead here and we've got Luka and Morris coming in soon." Ray nods and stand up.

"Thanks Susan!" he calls over his should as he walks to the lounge. Chuny, Haleh, and Sam watch him disappear through the doors. They turn to Susan with questioning looks, waiting for an explanation. Susan shakes her head.

"No, I'm not saying anything," she says walking away from them.

Ray is walking down the lonely street with one destination in mind. The cold air bites at the nape of his neck and his breath hangs in the air like icy clouds. The sun is rising in the distance, bathing the world in a soft, golden glow that stretches out as far as the eye can see. The very same sunlight finds its way through Abby's curtains, flooding her bedroom. It dances on the foot of the bed, slowly making its way up the covers where it plays across Abby's face. She opens her sleepy eyes moments later, squinting against the bright light. She gazes around the room, taking everything in. Abby looks at the window where the sun is shining in and follows the ray of light to the vase of yellow tulips sitting on her dresser.


	13. What to do

Hello, everyone. I'm sorry that's it's been so long since I have been able to update regularly, but I just haven't had the time. I've started my spring semester of college and I'm in three lab classes this semester not to mention two other classes. My time has been greatly reduced, but I promise that I will update as often as I can. I'm hoping to be able to update once a month, but there are no promises. (Sorry about that.) This chapter picks up where the last chapter left off and is in Abby's point of view. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, please review when you've finished reading. Thanks!

Abby's POV

It's one of those days that's supposed to make you feel lucky to be alive. As cliché as it sounds, it's true. But for some reason, I don't feel it. It's just another day to me; exactly like yesterday and the day before. Nothing changes. The world simply continues to turn, taking no prisoners. If you can't keep up, you're lost in the past. Me, I'm barely hanging on. I don't complain; I just wake up and take each day as it comes. People tell me that I really shouldn't feel like this, that I've come a long way from who I used to be. I know I'll be happy someday; I'm working on it. I lift my head up and look at the yellow tulips again. There are some things I need to focus on more than others.

* * *

I'm standing alone on the roof of the ER. It's my place; a little hideout that I run to when I need to think or escape from the world. Running away has always been my solution. I don't deal with problems; I just push them away and turn my back. It's worked on everything I've had to deal with so far in my life; my mom, Richard, Carter. Well, maybe not everything. I've got a new problem and its name is Ray. He crashed into my world and turned everything upside down… and I liked it. He has brought out a part of me that had previously lay dormant for so long.

I feel a hand on my shoulder and turn to see Carter standing behind me, a slight smile forming on his lips.

"Hey," I say forcing a smile. Carter walks up next to me and leans against the wall.

"What time are you on?" he asks. I watch him squint against the sun.

"One," I answer, "I'm really early, I know. I just needed some time to,"

"Think," Carter offers with a smile. He knows me too well. "A few people mentioned that they thought they saw you come in," he continues, "And I guess I knew right where to find you." I nod and stare down over the edge of the building; it's not that I don't want to talk; it's just that I don't know what to say. "You look like you've got something on your mind," Carter says joining me in looking over the edge. I nod again and say nothing. Carter is silent and glance at him to see why. There's pain in his eyes and he's trying to hide it. It's pain that I caused. I slide over and nudge him with my shoulder and smile when he turns to look at me; he attempts to smile back. I sigh. He's supposed to be one of my best friends and I'm making no effort to keep this relationship alive.

"It's Ray," I mumble, "Your predictions were almost all right." Carter turns his whole body to me, waiting for me to continue. "This relationship isn't turning out exactly how I expected it to," I say, "He's moving faster than I am." I look into Carter's eyes. "He loves me," I say, "He wants to meet my family." I grow silent and look down at my shoes.

"What are you going to do?" Carter asks, pushing for an answer. I shrug and dig the pack of cigarettes out of my coat pocket. I've promised myself so many times that I would quit smoking, and I don't remember quite why I haven't followed through with it yet. I am immediately reminded by the cloud of smoke that invades my lungs after I've taken a long drag from the lit cigarette in my hand; God I love this. I exhale slowly and watch the smoke get caught upon the passing zephyr and drift away. I turn to Carter again. "Abby," he mutters, "Don't do this." I give him an odd look. "Don't let him pass through your life like this." I laugh.

"I thought you hated the thought of Ray and me together," I say. Carter looks me in the eye and shakes his head.

"Abby," he says, almost pleading, "You are so happy when you're with him, don't let an early 'I love you' be the end of a great relationship. Wanting to meet your family is not a reason to freak out." He pauses for a moment, gathering his thoughts, "Every cloud has a silver lining, Abby." I roll my eyes.

"Since when did you become Mr. Symbolism?" I ask. Carter chuckles and takes his time to answer. Probably trying to think of something clever. I throw the burning cigarette down and step on it. I look up at Carter again and wait for his answer.

"I have always held that title," he says with a smirk. Okay, not clever at all. He puts his arm around me and pulls me into a hug. I realize now how cold I really am. The sun may be out today, but the wind still carries and icy bite. I bury my head into Carter's chest trying to capture any heat that his body is willing to give off. "Just give him some time," he whispers into my hair, "Give him a chance to make up for his mistakes. Ray knows that he messed up, and he doesn't want to lose you over something so petty."

"How do you know?" I ask pulling away slightly to look up at him.

"Because I'm a guy," Carter answers, "And I know what it's like to spend forever searching for that one perfect woman; the one who's beautiful and funny and intelligent. I know what it's like to want to do everything right for that special girl. And I know what it's like to lose her."

Suddenly I get the feeling that this conversation has become more complex than I had originally intended it to be. I pull away and pray for my pager to go off so I can get away. No luck. I look around and laugh nervously. I wish that I could run away right now; I need to escape.

"So, how's Wendall?" I ask attempting to alleviate some of the awkward feelings that are building.


	14. Make it okay

Hello everyone! Here's chapter 14, sorry it took me so long. I'm sorry to say this, but the next chapter may take even longer. I'm very, very sorry about that. I do hope you all enjoy this chapter. I'm a little bit upset with how it turned out, but I 'll let you all be the judges. Please, please review! Thanks!

* * *

She's walking over to one of her patients, a little girl with a broken leg. Abby gives her a warm, reassuring smile and introduces herself. I see the girl immediately relax and smile in return. There's something about Abby's voice that could make anyone feel better; or maybe it's just how she says things. It's as if she hand chooses every word she's going to say before it leaves her mouth. When we would lie in her bed late at night, she would say things that were so pure, so unadulterated that I couldn't help but hang on every word. What amazed me even more is how she can turn around and become so cynical; I doubt that I will ever understand that. I once told her that she could be a poet because of her way with words and attitude on life. She laughed and said that poets don't save lives and half of all poets either are or were crazy. I laughed at her. I was going to make a comment about her practically being crazy already, but I bit my tongue; I know better.

Right now, my only wish is to have her talk to me. It's been a week now, and I never thought that I would be so upset over her silence. I think I'm addicted to her; I need her. She could say anything, anything at all and I would be happy.

Abby walks over to admit, passing me on the way. She smells great, like lilacs. I could breathe her in forever. I watch her lean against the desk next to Neela and let out a breath of air. Neela catches me staring at them and whispers something to Abby who in turn glances over her shoulder at me. I smile at her, praying that she will walk over here. Luck is obviously not on my side; she turns around. I sigh, looks like this isn't going to be easy. I slowly make my way to the desk; my feet feeling like lead the entire way.

"Hi," I say, almost whispering, "How are you doing?" She doesn't say a word and barely looks at me. Does she have any idea what this is doing to me? I want to scream. I want to scream at her and let her know how I'm feeling right now, how much her silence stings, and how much I want this to end. She finally looks up into my eyes, and I'm lost. I want to smile, I want to laugh, I want to hold her… I want everything to be all right. If only I could gather this whole mess up into a pile and throw it away. She's waiting for me to say something, but instead I stand here like an idiot.

"So," I manage so say, "My band is playing a show tonight at the Empty Bottle." She looks uninterested. "At nine o'clock," I continue, "I hope you would consider going… It'd be nice to see you there." When I finish talking, Abby raises her eyebrows at me, as if to ask, "Are you done yet?" I look over at the clock. "Listen Abby, I'm off now," I say pulling my stethoscope off, "I hope to see you tonight." She remains silent and so do I as I turn and walk away from her.

* * *

I've never realized how blind we are when we're up on stage. I guess I never noticed because I've never searched for anyone while standing up here. The lights combined with the smoke from the bar create an illuminated haze that hangs heavy in the air and seeing through it is nearly impossible. I play each chord with unmistakable precision, but my heart isn't in it. It's funny, even without paying attention; I can hit all the right notes. I hit the final chord and the lights turn off. I stare down at my guitar and say nothing as my band mates celebrate our successful show. The clapping and whistles from our audience resonate through my hollow body, I still feel numb. I walk down the stairs leading from the stage and scan the audience, searching for Abby. There's no sign of her anywhere; my heart sinks even lower. Right now I want nothing more than to be left alone to drown my sorrows. Sweet alcohol, my only friend, take me away. I sit at the bar, surrounded by people but feeling more alone than I ever have before. Hell, I could be in the middle of an angry mob right now and I'd feel alone.

After six shots, the world is slowly circling around me and I can see Abby's beautiful face floating in front of me. Alcohol is great, isn't it? I can't remember how much I've had to drink tonight; a few beers before the show, a couple during the show, and now a few shots. The more the better, right? A shadow falls over me, a soft silhouette. I turn around on the bar stool and come face to face with Abby. She smiles her beautiful smile and pushes a loose strand of hair behind her ear. God, she's beautiful.

"Hey," she says, pushing her hands into the pockets of her jeans. I try to smile at her, and judging by her reaction, I'm guessing that it's more of a drunken sneer than anything. I hop off the stool and stumble over my feet, almost falling into Abby. She pushes me up and smiles. I open my mouth to tell her how much I've missed her and that I'm glad she's had a change of heart. Instead of pouring my heart out to her, I puke, right on her shoes. There's nothing like fresh vomit to say 'I love you'.

What happens after that is all a blur to me. Images of a taxi and then the interior of the taxi flash in front of me. I gaze out the window and watch the streetlights streak by with tails as dazzling as shooting stars. Abby says something about stopping and the taxi comes to a halt. I slump forward with the motion of the cab before blacking out.

* * *

I roll over in bed and immediately sit up, trying to figure out where I am. I gaze around the room; my head is spinning and feels like it's going to explode. My eyes settle on the small curled up figure lying next to me. I follow the outline of her body from her feet, up over the curve of her hip and to her shoulder. I lean in and plant soft kisses on her neck. Abby slowly turns over and yawns. I smile at her.

"Good morning," I say, "Did you sleep well?" Abby nods and yawns again. She reminds me of a lion, or a large mouth bass. I can't help but smile while I watch her lazily gaze around the room. "So, how exactly did I get up here?" I ask, "I mean I doubt that I was able to walk at all last night, much less climb stairs." She smiles.

"Well you were in luck last night, that cabby was nice enough to offer to help me carry you up the stairs," Abby answers.

"And why did you choose to bring me here?" I ask, "Why not back to my place?" She shrugs.

"I guess I just wanted to take care of you and make sure you didn't die by choking on your own vomit," she answers nonchalantly, "And you didn't have your keys on you." She looks up at me and runs a hand through her hair.

"Well, I'm glad that things are better between us," I say, slipping my arm around her.

"That's another reason why we're here," Abby says, "You see, things aren't exactly back to normal yet." She looks down at her hands that she has folded in her lap and picks at her fingernail. After a few moments of silence, she looks back up at me, at my confused expression. "Ray," she says, "We need to talk." Is that ever a good thing to hear?

"About what?" I ask, trying to brush off the dull pain in the pit of my stomach.

"About us and our future," Abby answers looking into my eyes. I can tell she's searching for the right words. "I want to love you Ray," she says, "I'm just not ready for it yet. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I want you to know me, I want you to know more than the doctor and the girlfriend." I laugh.

"Abby, I do know you," I answer, "If I didn't, I'd be a pretty bad boyfriend, wouldn't I?" She rolls her eyes while I talk.

"There are a lot of things you still don't know," she whispers, "Ray, do you know anything at all about my family? Do you know about my previous failed relationships? Do you know anything at all about my past?" I shake my head, but say nothing at all. "I don't know anything about you either," she adds.

"Okay," I say, lying down again, "Let's talk. You and I are going to make this work. I mean we're adults, we should be able to talk to one another." She nods and collapses onto the pillow next to me. "Tell me about your family," I say after she's gotten comfortable, "Any brothers or sisters? Where's mom and pop at right now? Tell me about your wonderful childhood." She's quiet for a while, and I figure that it's best not to pressure her at all; I don't need a black eye. She sighs.

"I have a brother named Eric," she says, "I hope my mom is at her house right now, but I can never be sure about that one. And my dad, well who the hell knows where he is right now? I really don't care." She looks over at me. "My dad walked out on us when I was seven because my mom was sick. I guess he just couldn't deal with what was going on anymore. I don't know what was going through his mind when he thought a seven year old could handle it." She pauses and chuckles to herself. "You know, I pretty much raised Eric when we were growing up. My mom wasn't fit to be a mother." She sees me wrinkle my forehead. "My mom is bipolar," she says to the ceiling. When I don't say anything, she looks over at me. "You do know what that is, right?"

"Yeah," I answer, "Last week I treated a girl with bipolar disorder; suicide attempt." Abby slowly nods and smiles at me. If I could see inside her head, I'm sure I'd see her calling me a lucky bastard.

"It's very different, treating it and living with it," she says, "You only saw the tip of the iceberg. When my mom was in her depression stages, she would lie in bed for days, weeks even. Nothing that I could do would get her up." She pauses for a minute and sighs. "She's tried to kill herself before." Abby pauses again and looks straight into my eyes. "Do you know what it's like to come home and find your mom with her head in the oven?" I shake my head. "Her mania was just as bad," she continues, "She'd run off with random men for days. I begged her to take her medication, but she wouldn't have it. She loved her mania… She was the only one who did. You know, she chased me with a knife when I was a kid. There were times when I wished she would catch me and just kill me, but I couldn't let that happen; I needed to be there for Eric."

"So, how is it now?" I ask, "Is she taking her meds?"

"Well, for a while she enjoyed dropping in sporadically and turning everything upside down. The first time she came to County, she was manic and was wearing a dress that was made for a woman half her age." She laughs to herself. "There was a doctor working at County at the time who thought he was quite the ladies man… he hit on my mom." The story gets a smile from me. "My mom brought in bagels for the whole staff and then ran around the hospital, screaming my name, trying to find me. That was everyone's first impression of my mom. Carter was somewhat supportive and he and I had a conversation very similar to the one you and I are having now. It's been a while since the last episode, but you always have to be ready for the next one." She smiles weakly and sighs.

What can I say to her? Abby just told me about her dysfunctional family and childhood cut short. I can't tell her that I understand, because I don't. I don't want to talk about my family and childhood, because it will sound like I had the perfect like compared to hers.

"Sometimes I like to blame her for my alcoholism and inability to cope," Abby says, "It's selfish I know, but it works for me." She sighs and covers her face with her hands. "She passed it on to my brother," she mumbles into her palms, "Eric is bipolar too. Somehow I managed to escape it… well, sort of." She looks over at me. "So, aren't you happy that you and I are dating?" she asks sarcastically.

I wrap my arms around her and pull her body close to mine. She snuggles her head into the crook of my neck. I rest my chin on top of her head and breathe in her scent and run my fingers through her hair. It's in this warm embrace that I wish we could stay forever, safe from the world, from the people and things that want to hurt us most.


	15. Changes?

Hello everyone. I have finally been able to finish chapter fifteen and post it. I apologize profusely for the delay in my posting. I will try to post the next chapter soon; I have already begun to write it. I must thank all of you who are continuing to read and review my story; it's very encouraging to see. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Please continue to read and review this story, and let me know if there is anything that you would like to see happen. I'm always open for suggestions, so please don't be afraid to talk to me. Thanks.

* * *

"And then he brought her back here to County and paraded her around like she was the best thing that had ever happened to him. She was pregnant and they were happy." I stop talking and look over at Ray. He rubs my arm and smiles weakly.

"I had to work so hard to act as if everything was okay. Inside, I was screaming. I mean, how could he just show up with that, that woman and act like nothing happened between us? He dumped me through a letter and expected me to be overjoyed that he got her knocked up… Am I the only one who sees a problem with that?" I pause for a moment. I feel so guilty right now; I'm saying such mean, hurtful things about Carter and I shouldn't be. He's been hurt so many times in his life; he doesn't need me to do it behind his back.

"Their son was stillborn, Carter never got the chance to be a father." Ray doesn't say anything; he just stares at me with big puppy dog eyes. I snuggle into his arms and sigh. "And that's the end of my story," I whisper, "Well almost… a new chapter began when you came into my life."

* * *

It's funny how lying in Ray's arms feels so natural, so right. When I told him about Maggie and Richard and Carter, it felt right. I just poured myself out right in front of him; I'm not a closed book anymore. What's even better is that he still likes who I am. Me… he likes me, not the mask that I had put on to keep him from knowing who I really am, to keep him from getting too close to me. I think things are looking up for me.

I roll over in Ray's arms and he nuzzles his nose into the back of my neck. His warm breath brushes against my neck and through my hair. I can't help but smile; this is what I have wanted all along. Why has finding this sense of happiness been so hard to find? I feel Ray wrap his arms around me tighter.

"Ray?" I whisper. I get some sort of mumbled reply along with a few clumsy kisses on my neck. I run my finger along his arm. "Do you know how much I've missed you? This bed is so empty when you're not here." I can feel him smile against my neck. He slowly rolls me over and catches my lips in his. He pulls away and I slowly open my eyes to look at him; he's smiling at me.

"I missed you too," he says, "More than anything. Well… missing the sex was right up there with missing you, but you had a bit of an edge on it." A smile dances across his eyes and he ruffles my hair. Ah yes, I almost forgot about his cockiness.

* * *

Ray and I tiptoe past a sleeping Neela on our way to the bathroom.

"So," Ray says, pulling his shirt over his head in his sexy way, "I don't smell like puke and the shirt I was wearing yesterdayhas mysteriously disappeared, did you give me a bath last night?"

"Well if you consider a bath to be throwing your fully clothed body into a running shower, then yes," I answer. I turn to him, and he's completely naked. Why is it that seeing his naked body renders me speechless every time? One would think that I'd have gotten over that by now. He takes my hands into his and steps into the shower, carefully guiding me to the edge. I am apparently at a loss for any motor skills at this present time.

"Ray," I murmur, "I'm not getting in there with you." He gives me a bewildered look and then grins.

"Well, you obviously have to get naked first," he laughs while reaching for my shirt. I stop his hands. Once again, the bewildered look from Ray. He steps out of the shower and looks at me, expecting an explanation.

"It's one of those rules, you know? We just made up; we don't just jump in and start having sex right away. We have to ease into it." Apparently Ray likes my little theory. He grins and me, preparing me for a cocky rebuttal.

"Abby, why do they call it make up sex?" he asks leaning in to kiss me. He moves down to my neck. The man has a point. "This would be a good time for that," he murmurs against my neck, "Let me show you how sorry I am and how much I've missed you." He gently brushes his fingers on the bottom of my tank top, pulling it up slightly to reveal my naked flesh.

"You're very persuasive," I say smiling, "Very charismatic." He chuckles.

"Yeah, I'm the Hitler of getting you to have sex with me," he answers, catching my lips in his. For some reason, I think Ray comparing himself to Hitler is a bad thing; it doesn't give him a real good image.

"So, you have an evil plan behind this?" I ask kissing him along his collarbone, "You're not going to kill Neela are you? You can't, I won't let you do it!"

"Well with Neela out of the way, we could have sex on the kitchen table and not have to worry about her walking in on us," Ray says with a huge grin. I roll my eyes at him. Since when has he cared about being walked in on? I can think of countless times when Neela has caught us in the act and Ray doesn't want to stop.

"Okay, okay," he says, "I know what you're thinking and you're right. I'm just saying that it would be nice to have some privacy once in a while." I smile because I know exactly what he means. I enjoy living with Neela, but I think we both need our space every now and then. She needs her own bedroom; I need my living room back.

Ray brings me back to earth with a soft, passionate kiss. I feel his hands wander down to the bottom of my shirt again. He slowly pulls my tank top up over my head. I don't think this can get any better. The bathroom door swings open. Well, I was right, it can't get better, but it sure as hell can get worse.

"Oh sorry." I turn to see Neela turn three shades of red. "I… um… coffee," she stutters as she turns and walks out of the bathroom. I laugh and look over at Ray who is hiding behind the shower curtain, which makes me laugh even harder. He shoots me a look and I try to stifle my laughter. Ray leans into the shower and turns on the water and glances back at me. I smile and push my pajama bottoms down to the floor and step out of them. Ray walks over to me and brushes his lips against mine. He takes my hands again and this time pulls me into the shower.

Ray has me backed up against the shower wall and I'm loving it. Ray places his lips against my right temple and slowly kisses me down to my jaw line where he places small kisses for a while. Soon he's moving farther down, kissing the spot where my jaw meets my neck. Kisses are planted down my neck and along my collarbone where Ray decides to linger for a little bit longer. He's driving me crazy and he knows it. He's just trying to build me up for a climactic finish I guess. The kisses move farther down between my breasts. Ray hears the moan emerging from deep within my throat and decides to play with my breasts a little more. I plunge into a deeper state of euphoria, forgetting the reason why I wanted to take a shower in the first place… Ray is so good at what he does. I look down at him, his soft lips are gently caressing my skin, and his tongue… oh God does he know how to use it.

"Hey how about we wash up and get out of here," he mumbles into my chest, "We can finish this in bed." I smile, it sounds like a good idea to me.

* * *

We're lying in my bed, tangled up in the sheets, and out of breath. My head is resting against Ray's chest, and I rise and fall with each breath he takes. He's running his fingers through my still wet hair and leans down to kiss the top of my head.

"Mmm… you're so warm," I say, nuzzling myself into his chest, "We are never leaving this bed… ever."

"That's going to be hard seeing as you have to be at work in an hour," Ray says, resting his chin on my head.

"You just had to go and ruin it didn't you?" I ask, trying to sound pissed off, "I was happy and you just had to crush me. You're a real nice guy." I say the last sentence with all the sarcasm I can muster.

"You don't mean that," he says, "You really do think that I'm a swell guy."

"Swell?" I ask, sarcasm still playing on my voice.

"Yeah swell," he says, "You know, a cool dude, a real nice fellow." I laugh. How could I ever live without this man? "I know you want to lie in bed for the rest of your life," Ray says, "And believe me, it would be a wonderful thing, but you really have to get ready for work. I'm pretty sure you'd be upset about losing your job."

I sigh and climb out of bed. I wrap my robe around my body, and pull my brush through my damp hair. I go through my daily routine of drawing my hair into a braid and applying my makeup and searching for something decent to wear. Ray watches the entire time and says something about wanting me to wear my lingerie. I just ignore him and slide into a pair of dress pants.

"Just go like that!" Ray exclaims. I first look at the boyish grin stretched across his face and then look down at my outfit: pants and a black bra. For some reason I think the patients would get a real kick out of it.

"I'm serious," Ray says, "Wear the black bra and button one or two of the buttons of your lab coat. That would be sexy. Seriously, I will break my arm or something just to go to the ER to be treated by you." I roll my eyes, but can't help but smile. I lean in and kiss him.

"How about I save that little outfit for when you and are alone?" I offer against his lips. I feel the corners of his lips curl up into a smile.

"Promise?" he mumbles. I nod.

* * *

I step out of my bedroom, closing the door behind me. Ray has decided to call in sick and stay in bed for the rest of the day. Lucky. I walk into the kitchen carrying my jacket and bag.

"Morning Neela," I say smiling. She looks up from her coffee and toast and wipes some crumbs from her lips.

"Good morning." She's got a slight smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. "I'm guessing that things will be going back to normal soon?" I nod. "Abby, there's something I need to talk to you about," she says, a look of concern growing on her face. I glance down at my watch.

"Uh… can it wait until tonight?" I ask, throwing my coat on, "I've got to catch the El." Neela nods and mumbles a goodbye.

* * *

The El ride to the hospital is surprisingly calm and empty. I think the whole world died and forgot to give me the memo. I walk into the ER and figure out exactly where everyone in the world is today. Triage is overflowing with bloody appendages, vomiting children, and screaming babies.

"Good morning Frank," I say as I walk past admit.

"Hey Abby, I'd hurry up if I were you. Dr. Lewis is hounding the staff about clearing triage," Frank calls behind me.

"Thanks!" I shout, entering the lounge. I open my locker and put my jacket and boots away. I pull my white lab coat out of the locker and gingerly run my fingers over the blue embroidered "A. Lockhart". A slight smile creeps onto my face.

"You obviously got some last night." Even though the voice is more than familiar, I still jump. Susan… Leave it to her to ruin a tender moment. She laughs after seeing my scowl.

"Sorry, I didn't realize that you two were bonding," she says with a grin, "I can leave you guys alone if you need a couple of minutes." I roll my eyes and slide my arms into the sleeves of the lab coat. "Sorry," she says again, "Hey I know it's busy out there, but would like to grab some lunch later?" I smile and nod.

"Yeah, that would be nice."

* * *

"How's Cosmo?" I ask, settling into the booth across from Susan.

"Oh, you know," she says, "Happy, energetic… He seems especially energetic when I want to sleep." I smile.

"If you ever need someone to baby sit, I'm always around," I offer. I've never told Susan, but I've always been a little bit jealous of her. She's got such a beautiful little boy and I don't have any kids… well there is Ray, but I don't think he counts. "Ray would have a blast watching him too," I add.

"For some reason I don't exactly trust Ray with my baby," Susan says, "By the way, how are things going between you two?"

"Fine," I answer, "I'm talking to him again." I pause. What else is there to say? Oh yeah, this morning we had really hot, mind blowing make up sex? "He puked on my shoes last night," I say.

"Ah it's beautiful, isn't it?" Susan asks, "Nice, crusty shoes that you will never be able to wear again all thanks to your significant other. It's so romantic. He's a real keeper, Abby." I smile. "So how did the making up go?" she asks.

"I don't know," I say shrugging, "Alright, I guess. After he puked on my shoes, I took him back to my place and threw him in the shower. Once he was capable of walking, which was basically two hours later, I escorted him to my room where I helped him get dressed and we went to sleep."

"You left one thing out," Susan says. When I answer with a confused expression, she laughs and rolls her eyes. "The sex," she says.

"Oh, that was this morning," I say, "And why do you always want to know about that? It's creepy." Susan smirks.

"I was just confirming my suspicions," she answers, "And it's nice to know that at least one of us is getting some." I chuckle. "I knew that you would cave in sooner or later," she continues. I just roll my eyes at her. "Abby, you're crazy about him," she says in a singsong way, "You know that you can't live without him." She may be right, but I'm not going to let her live with the satisfaction of knowing it.

Our waitress comes to our table and Susan and I order.

"I'm thinking about getting a new place," I say when our waitress walks away.

"So your sleepovers with Ray are more private?" Susan offers with a grin. I smile and nod. "That'll be a good thing," she says, "Do you have any idea how many times Neela has come in to work completely exhausted because you and Ray kept her up all night?" I laugh.

"I never realized that we're that loud," I say. I guess I've been really inconsiderate toward Neela; maybe that's what she wanted to talk about this morning. The waitress returns to our table with our coffees. I murmur a thank you and turn back to Susan.

"So, what are you up to tonight?" I ask, stirring a packet of sugar into my coffee.

"Well, it will probably start out with me attempting to take a shower with little success because Cosmo will be screaming outside the tub. Then my night will really start to pick up; Cosmo will want to eat, but there will be more food on him and on the floor than in his stomach. I'll clean up the kitchen, give Cosmo a bath and get soaked in the process, and finally, I'll try to get him to lie down in the crib. He'll refuse to go down in the crib, but will lie in bed with me. Don't let that deceive you though, just because he's lying down does not mean he's going to sleep. Oh no, he likes to poke mommy's face, pull her hair and roll around. Basically, his goal is to drive me nuts as fast as he can." She sighs loudly. "And now I'm going to be alone with him for three days. Chuck's going on a vacation with some friends. If I'm not dead by the end of these three days, I'll be a very lucky woman."

"Let me take him," I say, "I'm off at eight, so I can swing by your place and pick him up. I have tomorrow off, so I can watch him then too." Susan looks skeptical for a moment. "Come on Susan," I say, "You need a break."

"I know," she says, "I just don't think he'll behave for you." She considers my offer again and then nods. "Okay sure," she says, "It would be nice to have some peace and quiet."

* * *

I push the door to my apartment open and walk in holding Cosmo.

"Anyone home?" I yell. When I get no answer, I walk to my bedroom to change. I balance Cosmo on my hip and push the door open. A soft glow escapes the room and the sweet smell of flowers surrounds me.

"Ray?" I ask poking my head into the room. A trail of rose petals leads the way to the bed where Ray is lying. I can only smile at him.

"So, how do you feel about a night of unbelievable sex?" he asks. I chuckle and step into the room so he can see Cosmo. "Abby, who is that?" Ray asks.

"This is little Cosmo, Susan's son," I say in my best baby voice as I jiggle Cosmo in my arms, "I told Susan that we would watch him tonight and tomorrow so she could get some sleep."

"Ab-by," Ray whines, "I wanted to spend time alone with you tonight." I smile wistfully and then turn my attention toward Cosmo who is busy chewing on my shoulder.

"Not tonight," I say, almost whispering. Ray nods and pulls a shirt on. I leave the bedroom, sparing Cosmo from seeing Ray's naked body.

Ray comes out of the bedroom minutes later, joining Cosmo and me on the living room floor. It's almost time for Cosmo to go down, so I'm reading him his bedtime story. Ray loves it and ends up taking over. It's kind of strange, I've always viewed him as a child, not as a parental figure. He's using a low, husky voice for the big, bad wolf that is making Cosmo laugh and me smile. I hear the lock of the apartment door turn, and seconds later Neela enters the apartment. We exchange smiles and she sits down and tickles Cosmo.

"So Abby," she says, "Can we talk now?" I nod and pass Cosmo to Ray.

Neela paces back and forth in the kitchen and finally turns to talk to me. The look on her face tells me that she's having a hard time coming up with the right words to say.

"I've put a lot of thought into this," she says, "And I don't want you to feel offended at all. It's really hard to say what's on my mind and-,"

"Neela," I say interrupting her, "Don't worry about it, just get to the point." She smiles and sits down across from me.

"I've been thinking about the apartment a lot… and well, it was cramped with just the two of us and now with Ray… you know. It just feels like I don't have any privacy and I've seen the two of you naked more than I ever should or want to. I don't think Ray appreciates it when I walk in on you guys. What I'm trying to say, Abby, is that I think it's time that I move out."

"Ray and I were just talking about the apartment this morning," I say, "What if you don't move out and we just find a bigger place with two bedrooms?" She smiles weakly.

"No Abby," she says. I'm about to object, but she doesn't let me. "Abby, I've overstayed my welcome. This was only supposed to be a temporary thing. It's really time that I move on. You and Ray are serious and need privacy. Someday you two will be married and will want to start a family of your own. You won't want to have me around; I'll only be in the way." She gives me a warm smile. "Don't worry, I've already got a place to go to." I just sit at the table with my mouth hanging open.

"I've got to get ready," she says, "I start work at twelve." Neela stands up and walks out of the kitchen, leaving me to sit there and think. Am I trading in one of my best friends for my boyfriend? And what did she mean about family?

* * *

Cosmo is lying in the middle of my bed, chewing on his fingers. I'm watching him while simultaneously pulling my pajama pants on and sliding into my tank top. Ray was called into work earlier; I guess someone leaked information that he really wasn't sick. Tonight, it's just the baby and me. I climb into bed and Cosmo crawls on top of me. He smells of bubble bath and baby powder; it's intoxicating. I close my eyes, waiting for sleep to find me. As Cosmo's breathing becomes heavy against my chest, I feel myself slip into unconsciousness. 


	16. Moving out, moving in

Yes, it's here; chapter sixteen. I hope everyone is enjoying the extremely slow and steady progression of my story. Thank you to everyone who reviewed my last chapter; I love to hear whether or not you guys are enjoying where I'm going with this.

This chapter is in Ray's point of view.

* * *

I'm standing outside of Abby's apartment, fumbling with my keys when the door swings open. I look into Neela's tired face.

"Hey Neela," I say, "Sorry I woke you up." I step into the apartment and Neela shuts the door behind me. She sighs and pushes her hair behind her ears.

"Don't worry," she says, "I never went to sleep."

"Are you kidding?" I ask incredulously, "Carter let you leave early, very early, why didn't you go to sleep?" Neela sighs and collapses onto the couch in a sleepy pile. I sit down next to her.

"I was packing," she says. I nod while slipping my shoes off.

"Going to visit your parents?" I ask. I take off my jacket and lay it over the arm of the couch. Neela stands up and walks to the kitchen. I follow her and grab a bottle of water out of the fridge.

"Not exactly," she says, "I'm moving out." When I don't answer, she turns to me and smiles. "What's wrong?" she asks

"I don't know," I say, "I guess I'm so used to seeing you here that if you leave… the apartment would feel so incomplete." Neela eyes me suspiciously.

"Nice try," she says, "I know that inside, you're secretly doing cartwheels." I grin, she knows Ray Barnett too well. "Besides," she continues, "You'll see enough of me at work."

Neela and I sit in the kitchen for a while longer, talking about her plans. I can't help but feel that I'm driving her away. If it wasn't for me, she and Abby would still be living together and talks of moving out would be nonexistent. She excuses herself from the kitchen, saying something about wanting to sleep. I stand up from the table and slowly walk to Abby's room. I gently turn the doorknob and push the bedroom door open. I can't believe it; Abby is in bed with another man. She's lying on her back with the baby sleeping on her chest. I watch her gently rub Cosmo's back and whisper small phrases to him. I take a step into the room, and the floorboard squeaks beneath me. Abby looks over and smiles.

"Hey," she whispers, the smile never leaving her face. I walk over to the bed and sit down, being careful not to wake Cosmo. Lucky little boy gets to sleep in my spot. I lean in and kiss Abby. Her eyes flutter shut as the kiss deepens, and I part her lips with my tongue to gain access to her sweet mouth. Abby groans softly from the back of her throat, and one of her hands finds its what up my back to the base of my neck where her fingers dance in my hair. She pulls away and smiles with her chocolate eyes.

"Did you have a nice night at work?" she asks, a mischievous grin forming on her face. Her eyes are dancing, taunting me about a secret that she's keeping from me.

"I had a great time at work," I say, "I still want to know who ratted me out." I look at her suspiciously and she chuckles. "I know it was you," I say, "Don't try to hide it from me." Cosmo stirs when I raise my voice. He opens his eyes and stares at me for a moment before distorting his face and bursting into tears.

"Aw, what's the matter Cosmo?" Abby asks, sitting up in the bed and wrapping her arms around him, "Did Uncle Ray scare you? I know what you mean…" She walks out of the room, carrying the boy who is stealing my boyfriend position. I'm not immature for being jealous of an infant. I follow Abby out to the kitchen where she thrusts Cosmo into my arms and busies herself by making some sort of mushy breakfast for him. She walks back over to the table stirring a bowl of mush and sits down.

"So," I say, joining her at the table, "When do we get to ship our little guest back home?" Abby shrugs and smiles at Cosmo.

"I'm not sure," she says, "I told Susan to call when she wants me to drop him off. She's probably loving the time off right now." Abby pauses for a moment to wipe the excess cereal off Cosmo's lips. She looks up at me with a mischievous grin. "Who knows, maybe we'll get to watch him tonight too." I cringe at the thought. Abby laughs and turns back to Cosmo.

"Oh no, don't do that!" she exclaims. Cosmo has picked up his bowl of mushy cereal. And is swinging it around. Before Abby can grab the bowl from him, he throws it at her. I look at Abby and laugh. She is almost completely covered in cereal.

"Still want to keep him another night?" I ask. Abby grumbles and stomps over to the sink. "Hey, I'm sorry," I say getting up and following her. I grab the washcloth off the counter and wipe the cereal from her chin. "It looks good on you," I say with a grin. She pretends to pout, but I can see the smile hiding behind it. I lean in and kiss her, my attempt at making everything okay. She kisses me back, running her tongue along my lips. She's perfectly aware of what she's doing and seems to have no intentions of stopping. I put my hand on her lover back and pull her close to me. Her body is pushed up against mine and she slowly wraps her arms around my neck. This is great.

The intercom buzzer interrupts our kiss and Abby pulls away. She runs over to the intercom and buzzes the mystery person up. I take this opportunity to clean up in the kitchen. I pick the bowl off the floor and toss it into the sink and I grab the washcloth and wipe the cereal off Cosmo's face and hands.

"You are nothing but a little trouble maker," I say. He seems to think that it's funny and smiles at me. "You think you're a real smooth guy, don't you?" I ask picking him up.

Abby opens the door and Susan walks in. She takes one look at Abby and gasps. "Oh, I see that Cosmo had breakfast," she says, looking apologetically at Abby. Abby shrugs and grins.

"Yeah, we made a little bit of a mess," she says. Susan laughs.

"I'm really sorry though," Susan says, "He's just so naughty lately and he thinks he's funny. He knows that I won't stay mad at him forever and that fuels the fire." She glances over to me and smiles. "There's my big man," she says holding her arms out.

"Gee Susan, I don't know what to say… I'm flattered," I say. Susan, of course, rolls her eyes and wraps her arms around Cosmo.

"Thanks for taking care of him," she says, nuzzling her nose into his cheek, "You have no idea how much I appreciated the time off." Abby tickles Cosmo's cheek and smiles.

"It was no problem," she says, "He was an angel. I loved taking care of him. We had fun."

"Well in that case," Susan says, "I may be asking you to do this more often."

Great…

* * *

"I talked to Neela this morning," I say. I look over at Abby, there's no emotion on her face right now. She nods and continues to stare into her coffee. "How do you feel about her decision?" I ask, She shrugs.

"It's Neela's choice, I guess," she says, "I just can't get over the feeling that it's my fault that she's leaving, like I pushed her away." I nod. "Hey, are you hungry?" she asks, getting up from the table. She's very sneaky when it comes to changing the subject. "Pizza, Chinese…"

"Let's go out," I say, interrupting her, "Let me take you out somewhere, we'll have a nice meal, and we can talk."

"Alright," she says, trying to sound disappointed, "But I was really looking forward to pizza, soda, and sex." She pouts. "You owe me one."

* * *

"Ray, is this a joke?" Abby asks when we pull into a parking space, "Burger King?"

"Well, I figured that we could play in the ball pit after we eat," I say. She shoots me a look. "Relax Abby. We're going to Applebees; it's right over there." I point to the other side of the parking lot.

"Sorry," she says, her cheeks becoming flushed, "I didn't mean to get so pissed at you."

"I know," I say kissing her. She smiles, it's one of the best things she could do for me right now.

"Let's go in," I say. She nods and we get out of the car. Abby hooks her arm around my elbow and we walk to the restaurant.

The hostess takes us to a table near the back of the restaurant. Luckily, there aren't many people around, so Abby and I can talk about our issues without the whole restaurant listening. I glance around the restaurant, taking in the brightly colored walls and "antique" décor. Then I see our waitress approaching our table and I can tell right away that Abby is just going to love this girl.

"Hi, I'm Tracy, I'll be your server this evening," she says. I look over at Abby, and see her cringe at the sound of the girl's voice. "Can I start you two off with something to drink?"

"Coke," I say, picking up a menu.

"May I please have a diet coke?" Abby asks.

"Okay," Tracy says writing down the order, "I'll be right back with those." She turns and walks away. As soon as Tracy is out of earshot, Abby sighs loudly.

"Oh dear God," she says. I chuckle. "Just once I would like to go out without having a waitress like that." I can only shrug my shoulders in reply. It's going to be a long night.

* * *

Abby's eyes grow wide as Tracy places her plate of food in front of her. She's obviously ready to eat. After Tracy walks away from the table, Abby crams a fry into her mouth.

"So," I say grabbing the ketchup, "I wanted to talk to you about something." I look up at Abby and meet her curious gaze. Her brown eyes are round and questioning. "I was thinking that because Neela is moving out, you might get a little bit lonely and I don't want that to happen." She continues to stare at me. I'm having a little bit of trouble saying what I want to say. It didn't seem like it would be this hard when I was thinking about it earlier today.

"Okay," I say, "I might as well just get this over with, right?" Abby nods and takes a drink of her soda. "I'm over at your house all the time," I say, "And whenever we're not at your place, we're at mine. So I was thinking that with Neela leaving, maybe it's time we consider moving in together."

Abby stops drinking her soda and looks me in the eye. She doesn't smile; hell she's not showing any emotion at all. I knew I shouldn't have said anything.

"Ray," she says breaking the silence, "We just made up yesterday, and you already want to move in together? Are you even thinking?" I nod.

"Yeah Abby, I am thinking," I say, "I'm thinking about how much I care about you and how I want to be with you. Abby, Luka told me about how you were attacked by your neighbor a few years ago; I don't want to see that happen ever again. I want to be there for you."

"I'm not a baby, I can take care of myself," she mumbles. I can't help but wonder how many times she's used that line.

"I never said that you couldn't, Abby," I say, "I just want to be with you." She stares at me for a while, a skeptical look on her face.

"Wouldn't you rather stay where you're at?" she asks, "So you can practice with your band. I think I'd be in the way." I just shake my head while she talks.

"You're making up excuses," I say with a smile, "Why? What are you so afraid of? I mean, you're reacting the same way as if I had asked you to have my baby." She shrugs. _Come on Abby, let me in._ I say in my head.

"I really don't know," she says, "I guess I like how things are going right now. With you living at your own place, a break up would be easier to handle. My apartment wouldn't remind me so much of you, I guess."

"I don't plan on breaking up with you any time soon," I say. She smiles. "What were you thinking?" I ask, "Do you actually believe that I would break up with the girl who has given me the best sex I've ever had?" Abby laughs and her cheeks turn bright red. I follow her eyes to find Tracy standing next to our table, her mouth hanging open and cheeks slightly flushed.

"Um… I … uh… dinner okay?" she stammers. Abby nods copiously and puts her napkin up to her face. I turn to Tracy and smile and nod. She turns abruptly and leaves. Abby has her entire face buried in her napkin and is trying her best not to laugh. She looks up at me, there are small tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

"Now that I've humiliated myself in front of our waitress, please tell me that you'll at least consider my offer," I say.

"I don't know," Abby says, "I'm not sure that I want to live with a guy who views me as simply a piece of ass. I want to be respected."

"Abby," I growl. She gives me an innocent look. "You know that I don't think of you as a piece of ass." She nods and picks up her burger; once again, she's trying to take the easy way out of the conversation.

* * *

"Are either of you interested in having any dessert tonight?" Tracy asks as she clears our plates from the table. I look over at Abby who appears to be disinterested.

"You know, I think we're going to go home and have some dessert," I say. Tracy turns and practically runs from the table. Abby just stares at me with that sexy smile. She's probably mentally calling me an idiot right now.

"So, shall we go?" I ask putting the money for dinner on the table. Abby nods and slides out of the booth. We walk out of the restaurant, stepping into yet another cold night.

"God," Abby says, "When is it going to get warmer? I hate this cold, nasty weather!" I put my arm around her shoulder and pull her in, closer to me. "Seriously, I think I need to move to California, maybe Arizona."

We get into the car and sit there in silence waiting for the engine to warm up. I wish I could throw Abby into the backseat and warm her up. I glance over at her; she's staring into space right now. I put my hand on her thigh, and gently caress her leg.

"So, Abby," I say. Before I can utter another word, Abby is on top of me, kissing my lips, my cheek, my neck. I'm guessing that she's considering the backseat right now too. She pushes my jacket off my shoulder, and then quickly wiggles out of her own. She pulls away and gives me that beautiful, sultry smile.

"Can we take this to the backseat?" I ask, leaning in to kiss her neck. Abby nods and crawls over the seat. Within minutes, we have removed each other's clothing, and I am holding Abby's warm body in my arms.

"What's all this about?" I whisper into her hair. She looks up into my eyes and grins.

"I guess I just couldn't wait to get home for dessert," she replies. She suddenly sits up and reaches over the front seat to turn on the music. "I don't want anyone to hear what's going on in here." She resumes her position on top of me and plants long, sensuous kisses on my lips. I let my hands roam over every inch of Abby's naked flesh, thank God for tinted windows.

"Wait a minute," I say, breaking the kiss, "Is that the Backstreet Boys?" Abby shrugs and kisses me again. The boy band song slowly fades out and a new song starts. I can't help but smile when I hear the lyrics.

Well, just - a look at that girl with the lights comin' up in her eyes.  
She's got to be somebody's baby.  
She must be somebody's baby.

Why do I suddenly feel as if I should be in a teen movie from the eighties? I roll Abby on her back and kiss her. I move down to her neck; the place she loves. She moans softly and runs her fingers through my hair.

"Ray," she mumbles. I pull away and look down at her. "Yes," she says, "I'll move in with you."


	17. Shall we celebrate?

Well hello everyone! I apologize profusely for my delay in posting any chapters. I'd give you my excuses, but I'm sure you have all heard them many, many times. One thing I will say is that I am experiencing a bout of writer's block and I hate it. Anyway, I am posting several chapters today for your reading enjoyment. Please review!

* * *

"That's the last one," I say, setting down a large cardboard box, "I am officially moved out of my apartment." I look around Ray's living room; there's no space to walk anywhere in this place. "What color was your carpet again?" Ray laughs and pulls me down onto the couch. "Ray," I whine, "I have to start putting stuff away; let me do it now while I still have the motivation to."

I escape Ray's grasp and run across the room to my box of clothes. I really don't have any motivation to do this right now or ever. I look over at Ray who is staring at me with puppy dog eyes; I can't resist that. He gets off the couch and envelopes me in a hug.

This puzzle called my life is finally coming together.

I bury my face into Ray's chest. He smells great, as always, and I don't want to leave this place, ever. Ray runs his fingers through my hair and kisses the top of my head. If I listen close enough, I can hear his heart beating within his chest; it's mesmerizing.

"Hey," he whispers into my hair, "Let's go to bed."

That doesn't sound like a bad offer right now.

* * *

I place my final pair of underwear beside Ray's in the top drawer of our dresser and stand back and smile. My clothes are all put away, my blankets are on Ray's bed, and my pillow is next to his.

"What are you staring at?" Ray asks as he pushes me onto the bed.

"Our bedroom," I answer, glancing around the room, "It looks good. I never thought that unpacking could be so … enjoyable."

"Perhaps the breaks we took periodically made it so enjoyable," Ray says, kissing my neck, "I know I enjoyed them." Yeah, that's probably it. I smile as Ray begins to push my shirt up. He looks up at me with his winsome smile; I melt right there in his arms. I pull my shirt up, over my head and then try to do the same for Ray. After several unsuccessful attempts to free him of his t-shirt, I give up and let him do all the work. He lies on top of me burying my body amongst the blankets He kisses me deeply and I can tell he's becoming more and more aroused.

"We've finished the unpacking, let's celebrate," he mumbles, his voice becoming raspy. I nod in agreement and reach down to unbutton his pants.

**BeepBeepBeep**

I glance over at my pager that is lying on the nightstand, going off. Ray moans and rolls off of me. I reach for the pager.

"It's County," I say, "I'd better get ready." Seconds later, Ray's pager goes off.

"We can celebrate later," he says kissing my forehead.

* * *

Ray and I run through the doors of the ER; the place is a zoo. As we pass the admit desk, Carter begins chasing after us.

"Thanks for coming in guys. Okay, there was a fire at a bank, so far about 35 casualties; we're getting five maybe ten. No word on how many major." Ray and I pick up our pace and are out in the ambulance at the same time the first emergency vehicle pulls up and the back door flies open.

"I've got this one," Luka says running to the ambulance, "Abby you're with me." I follow him and listen as the paramedic gives us the information.

"Thirty-five year old male, John Salen, injuries to the head, neck, and chest. Unconscious for five minutes on the way here and is now currently awake and responsive."

"Sir, I'm doctor Lockhart and I'll be treating you." Mr. Salen looks in to my eyes and attempts to speak.

"Please help me," he says in a whisper.

"We'll do everything we can sir," I say as we push the gurney into trauma one.

"On my count," Luka says. We lift Mr. Salen onto the gurney.

"Good breath sounds on the right," I say as I listen to Mr. Salen's breathing, "Decreased breath sounds on the left." I watch Luka prepare for a chest tube. "Pupils are equal but sluggish." Mr. Salen's body begins to shake.

"He's seizing!" Haleh announces.

"Shit!"

I look up at Luka whose hands are covered in blood.

"I nicked the artery," he says, "Hang two units of O neg. Haleh, call the blood bank and get four units down here now!" Haleh runs over to the phone on the wall.

* * *

"Time of death… 17:39."

I pull my gloves off and drop them to the floor where they land in a standing pool of blood. Mr. Salen had been shipped up to the OR and Luka and I moved on to three more traumas. I am officially exhausted.

"Nice save on that teenager," I say to Luka as we leave the trauma room.

"Yeah," Luka mumbles. I look over at him; his brow is furrowed like he's in deep thought or something.

"Something on your mind?" I ask, "You seemed a little bit distracted during trauma." Luka nods and massages his temples.

"It's Sam," he answers, "She's acting very strange lately, not talking to me, avoiding me. I had to sleep out on the couch last night because she locked me out of the bedroom. I don't even know what I did."

"I'm not sure what to tell you, Luka," I say, "Maybe she thinks you're sleeping with someone else. Have you given her any reason to suspect that at all?" He leans back against the counter and stares at the ceiling. Oh my gosh, the man has to think about it. Suddenly his eyes grow wide.

"I did," he says almost choking on his words, "I said someone else's name while Sam and I were in bed together."

"You what!" I exclaim, "Luka, you're not serious are you? That's one of the worst things to do during sex." Luka nods and covers his face with his hands. "Whose name did you say?" I ask. I can't help but wonder. Maybe it was Neela; I remember how pissy Sam was during the whole "Neela has a crush on Luka" thing. How pissed would Sam be if Luka said her name during sex?

"I said your name," Luka says.

* * *

"Hey," Ray says as I walk into the bedroom. I shut the door and smile at him.

"Do you feel nice and refreshed after that shower?" he asks. I nod and let my towel fall to the floor. Ray's eyes grow wide. "Hey Gorgeous, my girlfriend isn't going to be home for a while, so why don't we make the most of our time?" I laugh and crawl into bed. Ray wraps his arms around my waist and looks into my eyes.

"So despite being stuck in trauma for hours, how was your shift?" he asks. I sigh.

"Sam hates me," I say, "It turns out that Luka is screaming my name during sex."

"Why?" Ray asks, "I mean you haven't been with for long time. Why would he all of a sudden just start moaning your name?"

"It's kind of stupid," I say, "You see, there was this one thing that I used to do that Luka really, really enjoyed. I guess Sam did it for him one night. Maybe it sparked some memories of me or something."

"And what was that one thing that Luka enjoyed so much?" Ray asks, "I'm rather intrigued by this." I blush and laugh.

"I suppose I could show you," I whisper. Ray grins and kisses me, and I slide my hands underneath his shirt up to his chest, "You have to get naked first." I don't think I've ever seen him take off his clothes so quickly. I smile and lean in to kiss him. I leave his lips and travel down to his neck and eventually move to his collarbone.

"Oh Abby," he murmurs. I glance up at him; his eyes are closed and he has a contented grin on his face. I guide my lips down to his chest and continue on to his navel. After a few minutes of kissing and teasing, I can tell that Ray is finally getting restless.

"Abby," he whines. I ignore him and continue kissing his stomach.

"Abby please," he says, "You're driving me crazy." I stop and look up at him with my best naughty smile.

"I know," I say in my best sensual voice. Ray leans his head back into the pillow and groans.

"You're only making it harder on yourself," I say, "Just sit back and enjoy the ride."

If I had an evil cackle, I would seriously use it right now. My kisses continue down Ray's torso to the crest of his hip and down further to his inner thigh. I know he won't be able to stand much more of this.

"Please Abby," he says. I sit up and stare at him for a minute.

"I'm cold," I say getting out of the bed.

"Where are you going?" Ray asks, sitting up.

"I'm getting a shirt," I answer, motioning to the dresser.

"Oh no you don't," Ray says grabbing my arm and pulling me back into the bed. Maybe he knows that I'm trying to torture him. "Abby, stop playing games," he says, trying to hide his smile.

"You know you loved it," I say, "Every minute of it."

The phone on the nightstand starts its shrill ring. Ray reaches over me, grabs the phone, and rips the cord right out of the wall. Someone is obviously in need of a release. I watch him drop the phone to the floor, and then lie down on the pillow again.

"Please," he says, "I have been waiting for this all day." I cuddle up to him and nibble on his ear.

"Okay," I whisper, "Get a condom."

I watch him reach into the nightstand and come up empty handed.

"Shit," he mumbles. He turns to me. "We're out." I shrug my shoulders and lie back on the pillow.

"There's always tomorrow," I suggest.

"But I'm ready now," Ray whines.

"Well you can take care of that by yourself, can't you?" I ask, giving him a big grin. He scowls at me and groans.

"You're evil, you know that?" he says.

I know.


	18. Believe Me

Sorry to bother you all again, but I forgot to mention that chapters 17 are merely filler chapters. My story will eventually progress, I promise.

* * *

This has got to be the shift from hell. It's St. Patrick's Day and I've been watching drunk after drunk be brought in from bar fights and accidental falls from balconies. God, I hope I was never like this.

"Are you actually going to get some work done, or are you just going to stand around all day?"

I turn to face a less than enthusiastic Susan and shrug. She continues to stare at me; I guess she actually wants me to respond to her question.

"I don't know," I say, "I kind of enjoy just standing here, you know people watching… and according to my watch, my shift is over. Now if you don't mind, Ray and I are going to-,"

"I don't want to hear it," Susan says covering her ears. I smile at her.

"Are we really that predictable?" I ask. Maybe Ray and I should actually try to hide our activities from the rest of the ER.

"Abby, do you and Ray even do anything else? I mean I've already walked in on you two four times this week and it's only Tuesday! And I don't even know the extent of what you guys do at home; from what I see around here, it looks like you never see each other, either that or you just can't get enough."

I stop and thing for a minute, Susan is right except for the whole not seeing each other thing; Ray and I never go out or anything. We always order in and watch a movie or two and eventually move on to other activities. Tonight, though, is different; we're doing dinner and a movie… maybe a bit of other stuff in the back row of the theater. God, I really can't get enough.

"Susan, I'd really love to just sit here and talk with you all night, but I really have to get going," I say, "You know how it is, I can only go so long before I need to feel Ray's-."

"Okay, okay go!" Susan exclaims. I grin at her and walk toward the lounge.

"Hey, are you ready to go?" Rays asks as I walk through the lounge door. I pull my lab coat off and walk to my locker.

"Yeah almost," I answer, "I just need to change. Are you sure you don't want to cancel the reservations and just go home and-,"

"Have sex?" Ray says, completing my sentence. I smile and blush.

"Hey," he says, "I want to take you out, you deserve it. Besides, we can always do that other thing after dinner." I smile again and lean in to kiss him.

"Hey did you bring your sexy outfit?" Ray asks against my lips.

"Of course," I murmur," I know how much you like it. Now, if you'd let me change, we could leave sooner meaning we would get home sooner and have more time to do other… stuff."

I walk to the ladies room and Ray is following closely behind. After several unsuccessful attempts to change out of my work clothes, I am forced to send Ray out of the room. I pull on the "sexy shirt" and go to the mirror to fix my hair. I remember why Ray loves this shirt so much; my otherwise small boobs seem to triple in size when I put this shirt on. I take a couple of minutes to apply my make up and I'm ready for our night out. I walk out of the restroom and watch the eyes of several of my male coworkers and patients grow wide.

"Ray," I say, "I'm ready now; let's go." I start walking toward admit when a drunk patient grabs my hand and pulls my down onto his lap.

"Hey Babe," he says, "How about you come home with me tonight." I struggle to extract myself from his grasp, but her just holds on tighter. "Hey you're a real tough one aren't you?" he asks. I turn away from him; the stench of liquor on his breath is enough to make me want to vomit.

"Ray!" I cry, "Help me!" Ray turns from his discussion with Luka to see me on the patient's lap.

"What the hell?" he says as he rushes over to my rescue and pulls me out of the patient's arms. "Dude, keep your hands off her. Come on Abby."

Ray and I turn to leave the hospital. I wave to Neela and smile up at Ray. He slips an arm around my waist and pulls me closer to him.

"Now, on to our night out," he says with that sexy smile.

Suddenly, suturing supplies fly our from behind us, and Ray falls to the floor. I turn to find our disgruntled patient ready to attack Ray.

"Security!" I yell as I kneel down next to Ray, "Ray, Ray look at me. I need a gurney over here!"

I pull my hand out from behind Ray's head; it's covered with blood. Malik brings a gurney over and he and Luka lift Ray onto it.

* * *

Ray's Pov

My head is pounding right now and the room is so dark, I can't tell where I am. Abby is sleeping next to me; she's still wearing the sexy shirt and from my angle the shirt is even sexier. Her hair is messy and strewn across the pillow beneath her and her lips are drawn into a pout. God, I want her right now. The door opens and light floods my small room; well I can see that I haven't left County yet.

"Hey you're up," Sam says. I nod and rub my head.

"What the hell happened?" I ask. Sam chuckles and leans against the hospital bed.

"You need some more morphine?" she asks. I nod in return and watch as she adds the morphine to my IV. "That drunk guy hit you on the back of the head with a suture pan," Sam says as she sits in the chair next to the bed, "You've got a nice gash, it needed twenty-nine stitches. You freaked Abby out." I smile.

"What happened to that dude?" I ask

"Security got him," she answers, "He was taken down to the police station. What did you do to piss him off anyway?"

"I didn't let him get it on with Abby," I answer.

"Thanks for that," Abby says. I look down at her; she's peeking through one eye at me. "You're my hero," she says with a smile, "And I'm glad to see that you're feeling better. I was ready to kick that guy's ass."

"Yeah, you should have seen her," Sam interrupts, "Immediately after that guy hit you, Abby went into doctor mode and after you were taken to exam three, she went berserk and tried to attack the guy. Security was going to take her down to the station too. You really should have been there, Ray, you would have been proud."

"Yeah, unfortunately I was a little busy being unconscious and all," I quip.

* * *

"Doctor Abby!" I yell. Abby walks into our bedroom. She smiles at me, and leans against the doorframe. She looks tired but beautiful. Her hair is pulled back into a ponytail and her makeup has long since been washed off. She's radiating natural beauty.

"What do you need?" Abby asks, the smile never leaving her face, "Anything, just name it."

"I need you," I answer, "Every bit of you."

She walks to the foot of the bed and sits down. We stare at each other for a few moments, a few silent, beautiful moments. Abby laughs and crawls up the length of the bed to me, seduction dripping from every inch of her body. She collapses into my arms and her soft giggles brush against my cheek. I rub my hands all over her exposed flesh up to her arched neck. She leans in slowly and brushes her full lips against mine; she lingers there for a moment and smiles. Her arms find their way around my neck, and my hands rest on her hips.

"You're beautiful," I say.

She doesn't believe me; she never does. I wish she could understand just how much I love her; how beautiful I think she is. Every aspect of her intrigues me: her smile, her eyes, her personality; I love it all, I need it all.


	19. The Fireworks in Your Eyes

Okay, after yet another extremely long hiatus, I have another chapter for you all. I am so sorry for how long this is taking me. I have many, many chapters in progress for the future, but I need small fillers that I am currently working on. I promise there will be much more if you all want it

This chapter takes place several months after the last one, on the forth of July.

Enjoy!

* * *

I look over at Abby who is lying next to me on the blanket. It's hard to believe  
that it's only been six months since we stared dating; it feels like so much  
more. I look back at our ups and downs and smile; everything that we've gone  
through has been worth it. Abby stretches her arms up over her head and a yawn  
escapes her mouth. Her hair is pulled back into a messy ponytail and her cheeks  
are painted a faint shade of pink from the afternoon sun. The July air is hot  
and humid, sticking to our bodies. I can see Abby's skin around her tank top  
shine from the perspiration. The ground below us is cool and feels great  
against my warm skin.

"How much longer?" Abby moans. I love it when she whines. I look out across the  
horizon at the setting sun.

"Sweets, it's not even dark yet," I answer, "Fireworks are viewed best at  
night." She sighs and scoots closer to me. I know this is an invitation to  
cuddle, but I decide to toy with her a bit. She nudges me with her shoulder and  
I look down into those big brown eyes; she knows she can win me over with those  
any time, but this time, I am somehow able to avoid taking the bait.

"May I help you?" I ask. She looks startled, probably wondering why she failed  
tofaze me.

"Well I um…" she tries to answer but instead stumbles over her words. I try my  
hardest to hide the smile that's breaking through, but Abby catches me. "You're  
an ass, you know that?" she says and turns away from me. I chuckle to myself  
knowing that if she caught me laughing, I'd receive a nice, hard punch in the  
face.

"You know," Abby says, "That guy over there looks like he's in need of some  
love, and I thing I can help him out with that." I look over at the guy she's  
pointing at. Not bad, I guess. Probably mid twenties, tall, brown hair,  
athletic build. Of course he's no match for me, but on the "Ray's Completely  
Heterosexual Rating Scale of Other Men", I'd give him a four.

"Yeah," I say to Abby, "Why don't you go give him a backrub or something." Abby  
looks stunned again but then collects herself.

"You know what, I will. I'm sure he'd appreciate it, and maybe I can get a date  
out of it." She stands up and smoothes her clothing and hair. She turns and  
starts to walk away, but I grab her wrist and pull down on top of me.

"You didn't really think that I'd pass up an opportunity to fondle you, did  
you?" I ask, whispering into her ear. She smiles at me and I melt right there.  
She's so beautiful right now.

"You're gorgeous, you know that?" I whisper, running my hands up and down her  
back. Abby merely shakes her head at me and continues to smile. Her eyes are  
sparkling like fireflies and her smile is so genuine. She nuzzles her face close to mine.

"Did you ever think that you could be so happy?" she whispers into my ear, her  
warm breath rushing over me. I can feel her smile against my neck, because she  
already knows my answer. She knows that the feeling of being truly happy had  
evaded me for so long, but in meeting her, I have become the happiest man  
alive. I reach up and pull the elastic band out of her hair, allowing the  
silky, brown locks to cascade down over her shoulders, spilling onto my chest.

"What did you do that for?" she whines, "It's too hot to wear my hair down." I  
smile at her and ruffle her hair.

"I love your hair down, it's sexy," I answer. She gives me her classic eye roll  
and follows it with a goofy smile. "I really do like your hair down," I say,  
"But do you know what I find to be even more sexy?" She smiles, but shakes her  
head. I lean in close to her and whisper, "When you're completely naked." With  
that said, I reach down and start to lift her shirt up. Abby erupts into a fit  
of laughter and starts slapping at my hands.

"Ray cut it out!" she exclaims, "At least wait until it's dark! Please!" I  
release Abby's shirt and run my hands up over her breasts. She flashes a wicked  
smile and climbs on top of me. I know she's just playing with me right now, but  
I love it anyway. I don't think she will ever know the extent of what she does  
to me. We are interrupted from our rendezvous on the blanket by a small child's  
voice.

"Mommy, that's what I saw you and daddy doing on the couch and then-," Abby and  
I both look up at a woman who is frantically trying to quiet her son, her  
cheeks growing a deep shade of crimson. The boy reminds me of myself as a  
little rug rat. That's probably what my kids are going to be like one day. I  
look up at Abby… our kids would be beautiful. I'm about to tell her about what  
I'm thinking when she leans down and catches my lips in her own. Who needs  
fireworks when I've got Abby? She pulls back and smiles. I can see the sky  
slowly getting darker, like a deep blue sheet being pulled over us. Abby looks  
up.

"Not much longer," she murmurs.

"Not much longer for me either," I add, "I'm just about ready to-." Abby looks  
down at me and rolls her eyes.

"Very funny," she says, "Can't you ever behave?" I smirk at her.

"Why behave when being naughty is so much more fun?" I ask while rolling her  
onto her back, "Hey, after we have sex beneath the fireworks, let's go skinny  
dipping." She rolls her eyes again.

"God, Ray you're like a frickin' horny teenager!" Abby exclaims. Is that meant  
to be an insult? I personally think she's complimenting my very healthy sex  
drive. "Don't you ever stop?" she asks. I don't have to answer that either, she  
knows exactly what I would say. Who would blame me though? Abby is gorgeous.

I can feel her damp skin pressing against my own skin. The heat between us is  
growing, among other things. I pull my shirt off and watch Abby's eyes grow  
wide. She loves it when I do that. She runs her soft hands over my chest and my  
muscles ripple beneath her touch.

"Abby, let's ditch the fireworks and go home to our bed," I groan, my voice is  
husky with desire, "We can make our own fireworks." I lean down and kiss her  
neck; her skin is salty with sweat. I pull back and look at her. She looks  
peaceful, almost lost. Her brown eyes are fixated on the sky and she doesn't blink  
just to make sure that she doesn't miss a second of what is going on in front of her. Her face is illuminated by purple light and a loud boom follows shortly after. The  
fireworks have started and there's no tearing Abby away. The bursts of color  
reflect off her eyes and the sounds of the fireworks cause her to flinch. She  
reminds me of a child who has never seen fireworks before and is amazed by  
every aspect of them. I roll over onto my back and gaze up at the sky. During  
the sparkles and fizzles, I feel Abby's fingers slowly creep across my hand. I  
look over at her and see myself in her eyes.

* * *

It's like she's floating right now, and her smooth skin glides across my own. She wraps her naked legs around my waist and I press my lips against hers.

"Now, aren't you glad that you agreed to go skinny dipping?" I mumble against her lips. Abby nods, her eyes are closed… she looks as if she could fall asleep right now. She rests her head on my shoulder.

"Ray?" she asks, "Are you sure that the people who own this pool aren't home?"

"Yes, Abby," I answer for the hundredth time, "I'm positive. You know Mark from the Empty Bottle, well this is his parents house and right now they are in sunny Spain." She smiles and kisses me. We're getting into the kiss; I slide my tongue past her lips and rub my hands up and down the outsides of her thighs. I want to feel every inch of her soft body right now. My hands wander up her thighs to her hips and I find myself at her chest. She gives me such a high. A flood of light interrupts our passionate embrace. I turn toward to source of the light.

"Mark!" I exclaim. Abby quickly ducks behind me to hide.

"Ray? What the hell are you doing here?" Mark asks, "Wait a minute are you naked?" I nod. "Dude, that's not right," he says walking up to the edge of the pool. "Hey, who are you hiding in there? Abby, is that you?" Abby peeks around my shoulder.

"Uh, yeah… hi Mark," she says. I can almost feel her cheeks burning red.

"I can't believe it," Mark says, "My parents aren't even gone for two days, and you're already screwing in their pool. That's disrespectful, man"

I look down at the water, I feel like such an asshole right now. I've totally embarrassed Abby, fucked up any friendship that I had had with Mark, and his parents will probably find out about this and hate me forever.

"Tell me one thing," he says, "Please tell me that the sex was good."

* * *

There's nothing like wrestling in our bed, I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world right now. I love how Abby thinks she's actually going to beat me; I like to humor her. There are random ass slaps and bra snaps before this fight goes too far. She gives me a wedgie. That's it; nobody does that to Ray Barnett. I push Abby down onto the bed.

"You know how much I hate wedgies," I say. She bites her lip, trying not to smile. "Well I know something that you hate about as much as I hate wedgies…" She looks at my quizzically, so I start tickling her just below her ribcage. She immediately squirms beneath my touch. I am relentless even when she begs for me to stop. Then, she bites me. God, it hurts. I pull back and rub the sore spot on my arm.

"Sorry," she whispers, "I didn't mean to bite so hard… it just happened. You wouldn't stop." I smile at her. I'm not bleeding or anything, so no harm done. A smile creeps onto Abby's face when she sees that I don't care about the bite. She pounces on me and tries to pin me down, and so begins another round of wrestling. I can tell she's starting to tire; her breaths are becoming ragged and her strength is slowly diminishing. Finally, I pin her down.

"Getting tired?" I ask. She nods, trying to stifle a yawn. Her eyes are glassy and her eyelids are beginning to droop. I lean in and place my lips on hers. I let my lips wander up her jaw line, her soft breath warming my ear as I do. I roll off of her and look into her beautiful face. She smiles with her full lips and her gorgeous eyes. And in this moment of pure bliss that I don't think could ever get any better Abby changes my life forever.

"I love you, Ray."


End file.
